Incubus
by Katraa
Summary: After being sold at an auction, finding love was one of the last things he expected to happen... let alone having to compete for it. .riku x sora. .leon x sora. .cowrite: opal light.
1. chapter one

_a co-write with OpaL LighT...a multi chaptered. I love writing this with her It's so amazingly fun. If you don't like it well...keep it to yourself :D? Leave a review regardless. We'd love to know what you think. Once more, plot credit goes to OpaL and...what else...oh yes, pairings and warnings and all that jazz.  
_**Co-write**: OpaL LighT  
**Pairings:** Riku x Sora , Leon x Sora  
**Warnings**: the usual. boylove. swearing. suggestiveness. you know the drill.  
_more to be added..._

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_**Incubus**_

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The silver haired teen was pushed to the center of a wooden stage, his bare feet screeching against the polished boards. 

"Our next exhibit is Riku Karada, a seventeen year old male. He has a clean past, he never smoked and doesn't drink on a regular basis," the old man with gray hair and maroon suit announced, gesturing towards the young male standing with his eyes cast down in the center of the stage, trying to maintain his balance.

"He has just graduated, and was sold by his mother. Fit both as a servant and a concubine, with his exotic eye and hair color, and athletic physique," the man called, getting a hammer in his free hand. "Bids starting off 50 thousands!"

Quickly, numbers started filling the air, shooting one after another. Riku barely managed to rise his head up… His head was pounding, and his body and mind were fuzzy and slow. And if that wasn't enough, he was handcuffed.

Wearing a pair of jeans and an unbuttoned grey office shirt, the only thing Riku could remember was that he was kidnapped by a pair of tall man wearing sunglasses, and a sharp pain in his side, probably from a needle of a sort. He could vaguely recall his mother being there too, holding a large suitcase and looking at him with a stone cold expression. But all that seemed so far away right now… One hundred and fifty?... What? Where was he? An auction?

"One hundred and fifty! Sold to Mr. Kayaki!" the man cheered, slamming his hammer against a small wooden board and ordering a tall, official looking man to take Riku off the stage and then to his new owner.

"Cheer up, kid," the tall man reasoned in a deep voice. "You got yourself a good master. At least he's not interested in having sex with you," he hummed, leading Riku on.

The teenager only offered him a distant look in return. The man sighed and shook his head_. Oh, what's the point… The kid had too many drugs in his blood to walk straight, let alone listen!_

Riku wanted to rub his head in confusion, but the handcuffs ceased any of his attempted movements. All he could do was numbly saunter forward after the guard-like man who was dragging him to his new 'owner'. Owner…He wasn't aware that people still _owned_ people?

Riku didn't say anything as he stumbled towards the tall, lanky brown-haired man that was beaming. Owner. All right, that apparently was his new _owner_. His mind being as fuzzy as it had been initially, Riku stared dumbfounded at the man, as if hoping that by staring at him the answer to why he was here would come. Where were his _parents_? Was he _kidnapped_ or something?

"He doesn't look that lively," remarked the brown-haired 'owner' who eyed the tall silver-haired teen up and down. "I can see why his mother sold him, though. He's quite easy on the eyes."

Was that a compliment? Riku didn't dare to figure that out. All he could think about was the swirling cloud that kept swishing in his head. Where was he? Who were these people? Why was he in handcuffs? His mother? What about her? Did they know her? Hazed, aquamarine hues remained fixated on the brown-haired man.

"It's not polite to stare, you know," said Mr. Kayaki who folded his arms pleasantly over his chest after having handed the 'guardsman' a suitcase. A suitcase? Filled with what? Clothes? Papers?... Riku didn't even bother to think that he was in a twisted exchange of money.

Riku stiffened the slightest when he heard a weak holler from his right. Before he could turn to see who had produced such a horrid noise, his body was sent spiraling forwards. Someone had pushed him—that much he was able to figure out. Instead of falling into someone, he fell head first into the ground, face making hard contact with the frozen ground beneath him. Winter. It must be winter…

And he felt like blacking out. Anything would be better than this pain and confusion. So black-out he did. His mind fell away as he fell into a slumber himself, all the screams and murmurs of people slowly fading out.

It wasn't until morning before Riku opened his eyes again; a wet napkin was settled on his forehead. He was laying on some sort of soft surface… Probably a bed, he figured. Slowly looking to the side, Riku noticed he was in a well-lit room with a high ceiling.

He quietly reached to take the napkin off his head and sit up. Damn… His head hurt so bad. He frowned and rubbed his forehead, groaning and leaning back against the wall behind him. He soon noticed a bowl of fruits and a pitcher of water with some ice cubes in it and a clean glass nearby.

Riku quickly took the glass and shakily filled it, gulping the water down and sighing. He couldn't remember anything from last night… Only that he was handcuffed and he had some… Owner? Was he sold to someone? A small frown made it to Riku's face as he poured himself another glass of water, drinking it and taking a moment to examine his surroundings.

He was inside a well designed room, decorated with cream colored walls with classic patterns, half transparent white curtains, a small white closet decorated with copper colored handles, a desk with a lamp, a few chairs and a small stand beside his rather large bed, with the fruits and water on it.

"Where… The hell am I?" Riku whispered, rubbing his head again and sighing.

Riku wearily set the glass back down on the bureau beside him. Cautiously, his aquamarine hues wandered down to his outstretched arms. His wrists…they were burned. Or appeared to be burned, anyway. Red marks encircled them. So the handcuffs had been real… The silver-haired male stared down in mortification at the remnants of where the handcuffs had earlier been. And his body ached, still.

Frantically, Riku attempted to get off the bed and exit the room, but the realization that his leg was shackled down to the bottom of the bed came. And it struck hard. Fear, something new to him, began boiling up in his stomach as he began jostling his right leg about, trying to free it from its fettered position.

"What the hell?!" Riku demanded, his voice quavering as he shook violently from apparent nerves. Fear. All he could think about and feel was fear. Pain no longer existed. All there was was fear.

"Don't do that! You'll hurt yourself!"

Riku froze, his leg freezing. The limb remained suspended in the air, a few inches off the bed. The shackle that bound his ankle to the bed remained outstretched, visible to anyone who was looking that way. Sea-green eyes cautiously looked around the room. Had someone just spoken to him? "Hello?!" the silveret said, his voice cracking towards the end.

"Please, don't move your leg, you'll only hurt yourself," said the voice again, only a fraction reassuringly. "It'll dig into your skin."

Riku frowned and sat back on the bed, looking around himself. "Who are you? Show yourself!" he growled, growing tense by the moment.

"I'm sorry… Here, let me help you…" A maid dressed in a long navy-blue skirt and an office white shirt with a small golden lion logo on the sleeve quickly entered through the door, closing it behind her and releasing Riku's shackle. "I'm sorry… We had to cuff you so you won't try to run away… The house is surrounded by dogs that will tear you apart if they spot a stranger." She sighed, placing the key back in her pocket and smiling at Riku.

"Where am I?" the teen demanded quietly. "And why am I held captive?"

"You're at the Kayaki manor… You see, the Master of the house bought you as a gift for his son so he won't be lonely… Not too long ago the family moved here and Master Kayaki decided to not send his son, Master Sora, to a school, and hire tutors instead," the maid explained, bowing to Riku once.

"I was bought?" Riku cocked a brow, squeezing the mattress between his fingers and frowning at the maid.

"Yes. At an auction, your mother sold you there, as far as I know," the maid explained politely. "During your stay you will be given food and clothes, and will study together with Master Sora and serve as his best friend." She nodded, offering Riku a tiny smile. "If you have any further questions, please note the red button near the door. It will connect you to the employee quarters. The blue one will allow you to speak with Master Sora."

"…This is absurd…" Riku shook his head, frowning. "Selling people is illegal!"

"I'm sorry, but I must go now," the maid answered curtly, bowing once again. "I shall lock you now. Behind your desk is a bookcase, please feel free to read some fine literature until Master Sora comes to visit you." And with that, she made her way out of the room, ignoring Riku's questions and locking him inside.

Riku groaned and began massaging his ankle distractedly. Now was a time to sit back and evaluate the facts. One, he had been bought by some rich, studious family. Two, his _mother_ had sold him. The motive? He didn't know, and frankly he didn't want to know. Just thinking about his mother doing something that _horrendous_ made him feel like throwing up. And Riku was quite surprised he didn't. The taste in the back of his mouth was _horrible_.

The seventeen year old continued rubbing his sore ankle. Riku didn't bother getting up and off the bed. He'd rather just sit here and recover as much energy as possible. Now was the time to devise an escape plan. He'd get to know the people here, find out their routines, discover a weak-spot in their defenses, then slip out without anyone knowing. It was _perfect_. Well… a rough kind of perfect.

"Why the hell would my mom do something like that?" Riku whispered hoarsely as his gaze settled down onto his tattered clothing. Small specks of blood appeared on various parts of his clothing. There had been a struggle, he supposed. A struggle he couldn't remember. So…that meant he had been drugged as well. No wonder he was having difficulties remembering anything from these past few days.

"This is so ridiculous," muttered Riku as he laid back down, his limbs aching intensely. "I didn't do anything wrong, damnit," Riku swore under his breath, closing his eyes, refusing to stare at the white ceiling any longer.

It must have been only five minutes before an unlocking noise registered in Riku's mind. The silver-haired teenager sat up quickly, his eyes dancing across the room, over to the opening door.

Perhaps he could run over and tackle whoever it was, then demand to be let go while holding them hostage? Feral thoughts entered Riku's mind as he watched numbly as a skinny looking boy locked the door behind him. Sadly, Riku did not see where the brunet boy had put the key. God knows where that thing could be…

Cautiously, the short brunet turned to look at the other teenager who was sitting on the bed. Nervous blue eyes met dangerous aquamarine ones. The brunt visibly gulped, swallowing down a huge lump of nerves.

"…Hi," greeted the small, brown-haired boy as he meekly waved at Riku, almost quivering as he stood before him. Oh yes, he certainly knew how _pissed_ Riku was.

"I… I'm Sora Kayaki… I uh…" He swallowed again, gaze averting Riku's. "I'm sorry for the inconvenience I don't know what my father was thinking when he did whatever he did but… He won't let you go even if I ask him to set you free so… I'm sorry you got here. Can we be friends?" he offered weakly, mustering up a hesitant smile as he reached his hand for Riku to take. "If you need anything, just ask!" He nodded, feeling a bit more safe now.

Riku quietly examined Sora's hand, and then his face. _Friends?_ he thought bitterly, narrowing his eyes at Sora. "Why should I be your friend?" he huffed, crossing his hands over his chest.

"I know there is no reason but…" Sora scratched his nape with his free hand, expression quite miserable. "I thought it may be for the best if we do… You'll be staying here for a while and basically… I'm gonna be your only real company." He sighed. "I don't want to cause you any harm… Please?" he tried again, hand still outstretched at Riku's general direction.

Riku glared at the hand. "You're asking the person who your father just _bought_ to be your friend? What makes you think I'll even think about accepting that fact?" Riku muttered cynically.

Sora sighed miserably. "I didn't do it. My father did… I can't be held responsible for what he did. If I could, I'd let you go."

"Then sneak me out. Pay him off. Do _something_. I don't want to be here so why don't you save us both the trouble and get me out of here?" Riku snapped as he glared at the other boy. There was no way in hell that he was going to throw himself at the boy and offer his friendship. Hell no.

"I can't!" Sora replied, appearing a bit flustered and distressed. The skinny teen reached upwards and yanked at his own brown, spiky locks of hair. "I can't do anything to convince him to let you go! I don't know _why_ he thought I'd be happy if he _bought_ me a friend, but he was mistaken!"

Riku snorted in mock amusement. "Buy you friends. Man, you must be _quite_ the loser then."

Sora frowned deeply at this. "I offer you friendship and you start yelling at me! What's your problem?!" the brunet boy hollered, staring at Riku with ultimate confusion. "Aren't you supposed to like accept my help?!"

"I don't do things conventionally," Riku murmured and looked away from Sora. "Listen, I don't need your sympathy, kid. I just want to get out of here. My head hurts, my body hurts, my stomach is killing me, and I don't know what's going on. I don't need some snobby kid wanting to be my friend because he feels bad."

"Do you have anywhere to go to?" Sora murmured after a long moment of silence, eyes averting Riku's. He tried his best to disguise his hurt feelings, but some of the tone managed to leak through anyway.

"…No," Riku admitted quietly, closing his eyes with a small sigh. Hell… How could he know?! He didn't even know where he was, he didn't have any means of communication, and no money at all. As much as he hated admitting it, the spoiled little brat had a point.

"See? It's better if we become friends!" Sora suggested, offering Riku a tiny smile.

The silver haired teen narrowed his eyes and shot Sora a look of pure disgust and hatred. "Only because I have to," he muttered, taking Sora's outstretched hand in his and squeezing it once before quickly returning it to his side.

Sora sighed and crossed his hands behind his head. "So… Tell me about you… I don't even know your name!" He grinned, cocking his head slightly at Riku.

Riku sighed. At least he was on the boy's good side. Perhaps he could earn the other's trust then slip away when he wasn't paying attention. The last thing Riku really wanted to do was stick around some place where he was someone's property. Riku detested that idea with everything he had. It was like _slavery_.

"My name's Riku," the silveret said distantly as he offhandedly looked over at Sora. Boy, that look the brunet was giving him was starting to bother Riku. So full of life. So eager to learn. It crept the older out. A lot.

"That's a cool name!" Sora commented chirpily. Without asking, Sora sat down peacefully next to his new friend, smiling warmly at him.

Riku cringed, just the slightest. "It's not," Riku deadpanned and looked off to the right. Staring at someone that happy made him feel even more flawed. It was best that he just keep his eyes to himself. "And yours is…Sora, right? Do I have to call you _Master_?"

"Nope!" Sora replied happily. "Only when daddy is around though…he might think you're disrespecting me or something…" Sora trailed off and sighed heavily.

"I see," Riku muttered and laced his hands wearily in his lap. God. He had so many blisters and red spots. Perhaps it was better he didn't remember how he ended up here. It must have been a brutal battle.

"Oh… Do you want me to call one of the maids to treat your wounds or give you some pain killers?" Sora offered all too happily, grinning at Riku. "It'll make you feel better!"

The older teen sighed. "I'll be fine. It's just a scratch."

"Weeeell… My mom used to get me band-aids for my scratches when I was little… I know there wasn't much to heal, but it still felt better." The brunette nodded, smile never once leaving his face. Ooh! His new friend was way cool! He looked really tough, too!

Riku rolled his eyes and sighed. "No. That's okay, you don't have to, _Master_," he huffed mockingly, jaw tensing.

Sora's bottom lip stuck out. "You don't have to be so mean you know. It's not as if I'm trying to make you feel uncomfortable or treat you as a slave… I'd much rather think you're a guest or a friend staying over…" He sighed, rubbing the back of his head.

Riku growled quietly and sucked a deep breath in. "Okay… Sorry, whatever. Sora. I still don't need a band-aid."

Sora's expression softened slightly as he relaxed back and hugged his knee. "Okay… If you say so Riku…" He sighed. "So… Tell me a bit about yourself?" he hummed, leaning his cheek against his knee and swaying back and forth on the bed.

Riku sighed and shrugged his shoulders a bit despondently. "There's not much to tell. I'm seventeen and was sold by my mother. That's really all there is, I guess. Now, at least. It's not like I'm a person anymore," he grumbled under his breath.

"Don't say that!" Sora urged and shook his head violently. "Of _course_ you're a person. You're just…tied down for awhile. I'm really sorry this happened to you but please, try to make the best of it?" Sora suggested meekly, uncertain if he should be afraid or offended.

Riku rolled his eyes and then sighed exasperatedly. "I guess…"

"Then tell me about what you were like _before_ this," Sora suggested and cautiously poked Riku in the shoulder, hoping to gain the other boy's attention. Sora gulped when Riku turned his head, anger still in his eyes. It wasn't rage, just constant anger.

"I used to be part of an amateur band." Riku huffed, rubbing his forehead. "Is that good enough?"

"Oooh.. What was the band's name?!" Sora grinned. He knew tons of band names, really! He did!

"Eight fingers up the ass." Riku shrugged, half expecting Sora's squeak of embarrassment.

"…Wow, that must hurt." Sora frowned and gulped, a tiny blush making it to his face.

"The band's name was Shadows of Oblivion," Riku sighed, letting his body relax.

"…Oh," Sora replied, quite bluntly, and pursed his lips. "And you were?"

"Singer and bass," Riku quickly answered. "No, I can't play a song for you."

"I wasn't asking you to…" Sora rubbed his nape. "Anything other than that?" he hummed, tucking his hair behind his ear. Oooooh… That Riku guy was so super cool!

Riku shrugged. "Nothing really. I'm not that exciting of a person," Riku answered lamely and eyed Sora with growing curiosity. Why was the brunet acting like a four-year old? Riku didn't know what to say, or think for that matter. So he remained silent for a long while. "Well then, what about yourself?"

Sora fidgeted a bit, glancing around the room with another out of character shrug. "Dunno. I don't really have any friends seeing I don't leave this place much. I like to draw and sing and write and stuff…and I talk a lot, apparently. My maids have told me that when I goaded them into telling me my weaknesses and stuff."

Sora was like an open book, ready to explain all of its twists and lies to you. "I see," Riku responded vaguely, nodding a bit slowly. "I guess you don't like it here?"

"Not really," Sora answered honestly. "I want to get out sometime and see the world. But that's kinda impratical, huh?" Sora said and then chuckled uneasily shortly afterwards. "Oh well…"

"No… I guess not." Riku sighed, crossing his hands behind his back. "You said you liked singing…"

"Yeah! It's kinda embarrassing but we have a karaoke machine down at the basement… My parents don't know it, but I sometimes sing there and pretend my friends are with me… Um… Well… Kind of," he chuckled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

"I see…" Riku hummed quietly, slowly removing his hand off his face.

"I'm better at drawing though. I used to draw on my own, but then daddy got me a teacher… I didn't like him. He tried to force me into drawing boring, traditional things. I hate that," he huffed, crossing his hands over his chest. "Besides, if I wanted some money, I could just inherit my dad's business." He nodded to himself, scrunching his nose.

"What business?" Riku frowned, tensing slightly. Well… If he was bought at some auction or a sale… It couldn't be something good, right?

Sora laughed apprehensively and rubbed the nape of his neck, glancing right to left uneasily. "Er, well you see, daddy sort of has this shady business. I mean, it's not _that_ shady. Just like, ruthless, maybe. He buys and sells land. Sometimes he scams people, convincing them a piece of property is worth more or less than he is aiming for. It's kind of deceitful so I really wouldn't wanna do that for a living."

What was Sora? _Five_ or something? "I wouldn't either," Riku concurred.

"You agree with me?" Sora asked, appearing quite surprised. "Everyone said they _would_ want to do that! That they'd love the money! Wow! You're the first person to say they wouldn't!"

"…Okay?" Riku mumbled. Perhaps the shackles and handcuffs were better than this kid rambling on and on. No wonder his father needed to _buy_ him a friend. Good grief. Riku was getting a damn headache.

"Do I talk too much?" Sora suddenly asked, eyes widening with fear glittering in them.

And Riku had two options. One, tell the truth and risk being tortured by the boy's father for _upsetting_ his darling son, or he could lie. And the con with that was that Sora just kept rambling on. There _was_ no happy medium in this situation. "No," Riku said, deciding upon the latter. Oh well.

Sora sighed and smiled warmly at Riku. "Thanks… You're cool _and _nice! I like you!" he chirped, hugging his knee closer.

Riku sighed. God. Please, let him die quietly already… He had the biggest headache ever on one hand, and blabbermouth Sora on the other. Could it get any worse? At least Sora didn't start talking to him about girly stuff like movie stars or something.

"Hey Riku, who's your favorite movie star?" Sora hummed, grinning. "Mine is this Demyx guy. You know, the blonde one? He's funny!"

Yes, that was indeed a whimper that escaped Riku's mouth.

"…I don't like movies," Riku finally growled, stifling a small yawn.

"Oh… I'm sorry." Sora cleared his throat quietly. "I… Guess I should leave you some time to recover… Must've been a rough journey for you." He offered a tiny, warm smile and squeezed Riku's hand gently, delicate fingers warping around Riku's wrist. "I'll see you at dinner then?" he hummed, smile never once leaving his face.

Riku frowned quietly and nodded. How could this boy possibly be so happy, and kind? It annoyed him, yet was somehow fascinated. Oh well… He was tired anyway.

"I'll close the curtains then… Sweet dreams Riku." Sora nodded and closed the heavy dark brown curtains, making them dangle from the ceiling and block out the light. "If you need anything, just call… I'll be in my room um… Doing stuff."

Riku nodded and waved Sora off. The brunet lingered near the entrance of the room, eying Riku for a long while. The brunet swayed back and forth on the bottoms of his feet, his hands digging into his jacket pockets. "Um…thanks for being my friend and all, Riku. You seem really nice and I'm sorry you were forced to come here. I wish I could something to help you. Anyhow, see you at dinner," Sora whispered, his words turning softer by the moment as he neared the end.

Once done, Sora exited the room and softly shut the door behind him, almost forgetting to lock it.

When Sora left, Riku exhaled peacefully and laid back down onto the bed. Wearily, the silveret began fiddling with the pillow behind him. It wasn't _that_ bad of a room—it was better than the one his brother and he shared back at his own house. And Sora wasn't that cruel—he didn't order him around or anything.

It was just a matter of morals, Riku supposed. He did not like the fact that he was labeled as slave by everyone except that Sora boy. Even then, to some degree, Sora acted like Riku was below him. _Locking him in a room_. Yeah, Sora _sure_ did respect him.

Riku grumbled and grabbed the pillow from behind it, squishing it down onto his tired and scraped face. His body still ached of countless cuts and bruises. The teenager desperately tried to remember what had had happened but he came up empty.

What could possibly make a human being sell their own _child_ for money? Riku growled. He didn't want to think about that anymore. Regardless, the silveret loosened his tense muscles and attempted to sleep. Anything would be better than laying there in this restless state. Perhaps even death would be better…

A few hours later, Riku was awakened by a clear sound of a bell. Groaning, he pushed himself up and rubbed his eyes. "It's time for dinner, Mr. Karada, please take a shower and change into something more suiting from the clothes in the wardrobe. I will accompany you to the dining room." The maid bowed politely, her hands clasping together before pointing at a slim, white door not too far from Riku's bed. "This is your bathroom. You have everything you need inside," she informed him shortly. "When you're done, please call the red button." And with that, she left.

Riku sighed and rubbed his head. So he had his own shower, huh? Oh well. It's not as if it was bad.

Standing up and stretching, Riku made his way to the bathroom, pushing the door open and discarding his old clothes, entering the shower and opening both hot and cold water at once, waiting under the cold stream for it to regulate. He liked it like that… Feeling the water slowly warming up.

The water here felt different. Back home they had a well, as some people did nowadays. Well water was a lot harder on the skin. This water, however, felt buttery soft and downright relaxing. The comparison was shocking, yet at the same time pleasing. Regardless, Riku made quick work cleaning his body and hair.

Yawning, Riku went to snagging whatever clothes he found acceptable in the dresser in his bedroom. The silver haired teen slipped them on with ease, pleased that they covered all the soon-to-be scars that plagued his body. No one really needed to see those—though, he wouldn't mind displaying them to the foul man who bought him…

Once Riku was fully clothed, he made haste at pressing the red button, as earlier instructed. As he waited, the silveret scratched behind his head. _I get to eat dinner with them, huh? I thought slaves were condemned to their rooms. Or was that just back in the old days? Has the twenty-first century turned slave-owners soft?_ Riku snorted amidst his thoughts.

Shortly afterwards, the maid reappeared at the door, having unlocked it moments prior. In her hands was a pair of handcuffs. Oh _fun_.

"It's a precaution, sir," she stated simply, not bothering to wait before she clamped the male's arm with hers. The maid no attempt in showing him where the key was.

Sighing, Riku groaned and followed the maid out of his room, dreading what was to shortly come. Could this possibly get any worse?

As soon as they arrived, the maid released him and made her way out of the room. Near his empty seat, there was Sora, waving at him and smiling warmly. On his opposite there was an elegant looking, slim blonde with blue eyes and ivory skin. Her hair was neatly collected in a pin that matched her deep green dress.

At the head of the table sat a full and rather intimidating man with brown hair and brown eyes. He was carefully dressed in a business suit and wore a tie… As did Sora, actually.

Quietly taking his place beside Sora, Riku cleared his throat and closed his eyes. Somehow, wearing a pair of jeans and a long sleeved shirt made him feel very… Inappropriate.

"So Riku, tell us more about yourself. We've heard good things from Sora, we want to know more." The woman smiled, straightening her stylish glasses over her nose and taking her fork in her hands.

"I don't really have much to tell." Riku frowned, glaring at his plate filled with very… Very good smelling food. Gods his mouth was watering.

"Mom… Let him be. Riku's hungry!" Sora chuckled, grinning at his mother. "Let him eat, then if he feels like it, he'll talk. Right Riku?" he offered with a grin, hoping he could win some good points by that little display he pulled in front of his mother.

Why were they treating him like their son's _friend_? Did these people _not_ know how slavery worked? Riku scoffed under his breath, paying careful attention to not let anyone else hear it. The silveret shifted a bit in his seat, being careful not to allow his eye-contact to fall over to his 'owner's' son. "Yes, sir," Riku said laconically under his breath, just tossing in the sir for good measure. Who knew how they wanted him to address Sora…

"All right," the woman said and returned to eating, offering a sad smile across the table at the two boys.

"Hey, Riku?" Sora murmured under his breath, poking the food on his place with a constant smile. The brunet's blue eyes glanced over at the silveret, expecting a prompt and concise answer.

"Hm?" Riku wondered, barely making a sound, as if not to draw attention to themselves. Sora's parents were too engrossed in their meal's to notice the two boy's talking under their breaths, thankfully.

"You _will_ talk later, Riku….right?" Sora mumbled quietly, pretty blue eyes glimmering hopefully at the silveret, acting as if his family had done nothing wrong. If the situation were different, Riku might have felt a tinge of remorse.

"Maybe," Riku muttered.

Sora grinned and went back to his food, munching on his baked potatoes. "You wanna come back to my room later? I have some video games and movies…" he whispered, offering Riku a tiny smile as he squeezed the silver fork with his fingers.

Riku kept quiet for a few moments before sighing quietly. "I don't have any other choice, do I?" he murmured, closing his eyes and shoving another piece of chicken past his lips.

"You can go back to your room but… I figured you might be bored or lonely, because you don't have anything interesting there…" the brunette reasoned, a tiny frown making it to his face. "Besides, I want to know you better."

Riku eyed his plate cautiously and swallowed his chicken piece. "…Fine. I'll come."

Sora grinned and hunched his shoulders with excitement, expression positively happy and anxious.

_God, he's like an open book…_ Riku thought bitterly, closing his eyes again. Very fine… He'd come to his room and worm his way into Sora's heart so the boy would convince his father to set him free and let him go back to his past life… Maybe even drive him there. Riku was a smart kid; he could find a job easily and live on his own. It would not be as if he'd miss his mother anyway… The damn woman _sold_ him to slavery. Riku was lucky enough to not end up in some old perverted man's house, that thought seventeen years old were a mere tool to please themselves.

"By the way," Sora whispered, making sure not to catch his father's gaze. Apparently the two adults at the table had begun having a conversation amongst themselves. The details were not known. "If you wanna have like a sleepover or something after we play games, I'd be up for that." Another, tiny smile.

"I don't think your father would approve," Riku lamented lamely. The silveret jabbed a piece of chicken with the prongs of the fork. "I mean, I doubt he'd want me anywhere but in my locked room."

Sora barely picked up on Riku's cold tone. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind. I mean, he bought you for me so…" Sora paused and then quickly said in a whisper to Riku, "which I still don't approve of, by the way. But I just…"

Riku wanted Sora to stop talking. Right that instant. "I understand," he lied.

"Good," Sora said and then sighed in obvious relief as he resumed eating his dinner.

The rest of the evening went by quietly; they finished their meals, had orange cake for dessert, and went back to their rooms, with Riku following Sora to his own place.

"We're here," Sora sighed, opening the door to his huge room and slumping on the king-sized double bed.

Riku took a moment to soak the sights in. It was designed more like a child's room, with pastoral tapestries striped with sky and navy blue, and the ceiling made entirely out of glass, so the sky could be seen when you looked up. There were numeral shelves filled with comic books and figurines. A big screen TV with not one, but four different consoles connected to it, not to mention the DVD and VCR. If Riku were in a normal condition, he would drool.

Sora quickly slumped down on the floor and pulled out a box shaped as a treasure chest. "Have any video game you like?" he grinned, gesturing Riku to come closer.

Riku cautiously did such and took a seat beside the brunet, observing him all the while. How one, lonely person could be so optimistic and jovial was beyond Riku's understanding. Then again, having your own personal slave that had been bought for you could rise any dampened moods, Riku assumed. "Not really," Riku answered honestly with a dismal shrug.

"None at all?" Sora frowned a bit and began sifting through the games in the chest, a determined look on his face.

As he searched, he shifted up and onto his knees and nearly lunged _into_ the massive box. Riku arched a brow as he witnessed this bizarre way of looking for a game. The brunet stuck his tongue out of the corner of his mouth, biting on his bottom lip simultaneously. It appeared to be a habit for the brunet when he was determined or working.

"What about this one?" Sora wondered as he sat back down on his backside, motioning towards the game in his hand. "It's a new one. I don't think it's hit stores yet…" Sora trailed off and surveyed the game cover for a long moment.

"That's fine," Riku responded distantly, as if not impressed or amused by the brunet's plethora of video games.

Sora frowned once again. "…Can you please cheer up?" Sora requested softly, setting the game down beside him as he eyed Riku closely. "Pretty please?... Is there anything I can do to cheer you up? More dessert?... Anything?..."

Riku shook his head with a sigh. "Let's just… Play this game, okay? My mind is on too many things." He murmured, rubbing his forehead.

Sora nodded and gently placed the disk inside it's slot, turning to look back at Riku. "I could get you something to drink, or give you a backrub. I'm not bad at backrubs, or so I have been told." He offered a tiny smile, hands on his hips.

Riku took a deep breath in. _Told you were great by whom? His parents?_ He thought bitterly, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"Come on! I'll give you a backrub!" Sora chirped, quickly taking his position behind Riku, so before the older male had any time to protest or move away, Sora was already massaging his shoulders.

Riku shivered a bit at the touch, instantly tensing his shoulders. _Is he purposely being overly friendly? He should really stop touching me._ Riku scrunched his nose a bit out of instinct, wanting to move away from the brunet, but found himself immobile. "What are you doing?" Riku said through gritted teeth.

"Relax your shoulders a bit," Sora instructed, poking Riku's shoulder with a pout. "If you don't relax it won't feel as good." Sora rolled his palms down against Riku's shoulders, closer to his neck, and then back to the peaks once more.

Riku, involuntarily, relaxed, his eyes fluttering shut for some reason. "Why are you doing this again?"

"To make you feel better," Sora smiled as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, the heels of his hands rolling against the tense muscles.

Riku sighed and leaned on his elbows, for once letting himself enjoy the treatment. He was stiff, and it wasn't as if he could really turn Sora down, now could he?

Sora slowly moved his hands to Riku's shoulders, then back to his neck in a short cycle. He wasn't all that bad, actually… Watching those oriental women massaging his parents at the spa and studying their movements was useful.

"Man.. I wish we had some oil in here," the brunette exhaled, squeezing Riku's shoulders and taking his seat beside the older boy, stretching. "That way I could give you this full massage thing."

Riku frowned and shifted his shoulders. Damn… The kid actually made him feel better! Heh, maybe he underestimated him. Only a bit though.

"Mmm… Perhaps." The older male sighed and rubbed his head. "So, are we gonna play this?"

"Yeah, sure," Riku stated a bit despondently as he folded his arms to his chest. "You can play first," Riku offered, leaning back against the nearest object as he watched the brunet with only a hint of interest. The game had already bored him—to be honest, he was not even a game person. His mother usually never let him buy them. And he didn't like them that much either, so it all worked out.

"Was it good?" Sora asked in the midst of playing, his thumbs tapping buttons repeatedly on the control. Blue eyes glanced over at Riku, expecting an answer.

"Was what good?" Riku asked curtly, aquamarine eyes hidden behind thick silver bangs. Even now, his voice contained a dashing of coldness to it. Sora figured he'd just have to get used to that.

"The massage," Sora reminded, turning his attention back to the game. The brunet was doing that tongue thing again. He must have been _really_ into that game.

"I suppose," Riku said simply, staring up at the ceiling for no real particular reason. _If I do get out of here, where exactly do I go? Do I go the bank and see if I have any money left in my account? Do I get a job and an apartment? Do I even risk going to see my mother?_ Riku groaned mentally at the dreary thoughts.

Sora sighed and shoved the remote to the side, eyeing the 'game over' screen briefly before crawling to Riku's side and leaning against the bed beside him. "You miss your home?" he murmured quietly, a tingle of hurt evident in his voice.

Riku lowered his look with a frown. "I would if I knew for sure I had a home to come back to…" he sighed, rubbing his head. _Still can't believe my mother sold me…_ He mentally groaned, running his fingers through his hair.

"And your friends?" Sora's voice seemed… Pained, actually, Riku noted. What the hell was bothering the kid? He got everything any other boy his age would dream of…

"I guess I miss them." Riku hummed thoughtfully, hand remaining tangled in his hair.

Sora pursed his lips and swallowed. "Well… I guess the situation is worse than I thought." He bit his lip, folding his knees to his chest.

Riku shot him a quizzical look in return.

"I wish I could really be your friend Riku…" Sora hunched his shoulders, smiling somewhat sadly. _Oh… There he goes again…_ The older teen sighed inwardly. "I mean, you're really cool and awesome and even though I guess you hate me, if we met in another situation… I'd like to be your friend." Sora swallowed quietly, placing his cheek on the edge of the bed. "Though you probably wouldn't take interest in me.." He chuckled and shook his head. "I'm a boring person."

"You're not boring, per say," Riku corrected as he scratched the back of his neck diligently. The silveret arched a brow when Sora made a somewhat guttural noise. "What was that?"

"I was laughing," Sora murmured and then shrugged. "I mean like, mock laughter, you know? I'm not _boring_. Right." Sora tapped his chin with his fingers and then offered Riku a fake smile. "It's fine, you don't have to lie. It's not like I'm going to punish you or something."

Riku frowned deeply at this. "Listen…I don't know what's suddenly up with you, but you're not boring… It's just I'd _really_ rather not be here in this goddamn situation, so excuse me for being so distant and contemplative. All I want to do is go home, and it sucks that when I actually think about it, I _can't_ go home. Which is so damn sad," Riku complained angriliy, narrowing his eyes out of instinct at Sora.

"I didn't _do_ anything to you, though!" Sora pointed out with a large pout, eyes widening. "I didn't tell my dad to do what he did! He just _did_."

Riku exhaled deeply and lifted his hand in the air. "Listen, let's just drop it. It's uncomfortable for the both of us. I'm sorry I yelled at you. I'm just still not in a good mood, and I doubt I ever will be."

"…I see," Sora whispered softly, eying Riku with a hint of remorse. "If it counts for anything, I still think you're cool…"

Riku murmured a small 'Thanks' and raked his fingers through his hair.

"So… Did you ever date someone?" Sora propped his chin on top of his folded hands, faint traces of sadness lingering in his voice.

"Mmm." Riku frowned and rubbed his head. Dated? Well… "Once." He nodded, "But that was a really long time ago, and I don't like remembering it." Mostly because in the same relationship Riku was crashed, dumped, and neglected.

"Really?" Sora smiled softly. "How was it?" He hummed, scooting a bit closer.

"Horrible." Riku shrugged, closing his eyes.

"Ouch… Did she dump you?" Sora scrunched his nose, toes curling by instinct.

_She?.. More like a 'He'. Not that he needs to know that. _Riku cleared his throat. "Yeah."

"I'm sorry to hear that…" The brunette sighed and shook his head.

"It's okay. It was a long time ago." Still though, Riku never did get over it… Ever since he was dumped by that blonde he decided to not get into any relationship. Not a serious one, at least.

"Did you love her?" Sora asked quietly, his eyes transfixed with Riku's expression. Big, emotional blue eyes stared deeply at Riku, as if attempting to decipher just what was swirling around in Riku's own hues. There could be _so_ many things going on in the silveret's mind and Sora hadn't the faintest idea on what any of those things could be.

Riku stiffened the slightest at the question. When he was prompted for an answer, his eyes averted themselves from Sora's almost immediately. "Does it matter? It was in the past. It's not like any of that matters now."

"So I take it that's a yes, huh?" Sora asked softly, puzzlement glimmering in his youthful eyes. "I'm…sorry," Sora apologized. "I'm sorry that she broke your heart if you loved her."

Without warning, the jovial brunet leaned closer and wrapped the taller and older of the pair into a gentle hug.

Riku frowned and shook his head, gently prying the brunette away. "I told you… It's nothing," he murmured, closing his eyes. "It's none of your business anyway."

Sora bit his lip and nodded, lowering his gaze quietly. "I understand…" he lied. He would not interfere any further. After all, Sora had never been dumped before, nor was he in love. He only had the promise of his parents to get him a nice fiancé when he turns twenty-one.

Riku leaned his head back and sighed, eyes remaining open. "I'm sorry, I'm not really being talkative and that I'm boring… But can I go back to my own room now?" He didn't like Sora's room… He didn't like big rooms in general… They felt cold.

"Sure," Sora whispered a bit brokenly, but hid the awkward sentiment with a forced, goofy smile. "If you need anything, the button's there in your room. I'll…see you tomorrow, then?"

Riku offered a distant nod and got to his feet, making sure not to trip over anything in the process. "Tomorrow, yeah." Frankly, Riku didn't want tomorrow to come, nor the day after. He didn't want to remain here at all. Perhaps even the rabid dogs outside the house seemed like a better fate than what laid in store _here_.

"Goodnight, Riku," Sora said as he dared to look up at the standing teen, blue eyes shimmering with a dash of sadness. "Have sweet dreams, okay?..."

"Yeah," Riku stated simply and left the room, figuring that Sora could at _least_ trust him to make his way back to his own room. Sora did nothing to stop the silveret, nor did he pry any more conversation from the silveret. Sora just remained in his bedroom floor, watching as Riku closed the door behind him.


	2. chapter two

_Next chapter! Leon will be coming in soon, just not this chapter, so please hold-tight. First we need to get a basic foundation. I'm glad you're all enjoying this so far and thank you all for the kind reviews. We both adore you for that. Oh, and Opal says to eat skittles. Dude, just do it! Anyhow, enjoy this chapter and keep up with the reviewing, please! _

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**Chapter Two**

On the second day, at eight thirty am, Riku woke with a half-expected throbbing headache. The silveret groaned as he slipped out of slumber. Aquamarine eyes fluttered open, instantly being greeted with a white ceiling. Blankets were tossed over his body—he wasn't aware that he had gotten under the covers? Riku sighed and tugged the warm blankets closer, thankful for the unexpected warmth. He clenched his fingers tightly against the blankets as he attempted to fall back asleep but found it impossible. For some reason, he couldn't rest easy in this place.

And speaking of _not resting easily…_ Riku suddenly had a very strong _feeling_ that eyes were upon him. Sea green eyes flashed open and stared at the wall to his right for a long moment. His breathing began to escalate as he slowly lifted his head from its hiding place. Green eyes locked onto blue ones a few moments later.

"Morning!" Sora stated happily, looking at Riku from across the room. The brunet waved cheerfully and smiled brightly at the laying silveret. "It's early, but my dad wanted me to wake you up…you know, to talk and stuff I suppose." He grinned again.

Riku rubbed the back of his head and groggily stared at Sora. "Morning," he barely murmured back in curt greeting.

Sora rubbed the back of his head with a chuckle. "You fell asleep on your bed so I let myself cover you when I came at night… I just wanted to ask you if you needed anything like an extra pillow or a lighter blanket but… You were already asleep and you didn't answer the door…" He sighed and shook his head, shifting slightly. "So I decided to cover you up." He nodded, smiling back. "But then I left! Promise! I'm not some creepy stalker!"

Riku sighed and shook his head. "Don't mind it." He yawned, sitting up and leaning his head on his elbow. Well… At least Sora didn't touch his clothes…

"Do you want to go and take a short shower? I'll wait for you here." The younger male smiled and nodded. "I brought you some books I thought you may like, the classics mostly, because I don't know what sort of literature you like…"

"Fantasy," Riku answered shortly, stretching with a tired sigh. "I like fantasy books."

"I'll remember that, then!" Sora decided as he nodded his head briskly, grinning widely at Riku like the Cheshire Cat. "I'll try and find some fantasy books for you!" Sora declared as he sifted thought he classic books he had brought. "I don't think I have any here, though…"

"It's fine, really," Riku said quickly as he collected a new pair of clothes from the bureau and headed over to the room with the shower. Quietly, he reached for the doorknob only to find that the door was locked. His brows creased at once.

"Oh right, it's locked…sorry!" Sora squeaked as he rushed over and fumbled with his jacket pocket. Quickly, the brunet retrieved a key from said pocket and jammed it into the keyhole, easily unlocking the door. "Sorry."

_So they won't even let me have my own bathroom without them unlocking it?_ "I'll leave it unlocked for you!" Sora said quickly, a blush appearing on his face. "I didn't know Dad locked everything…"

Riku said nothing, just entered the bathroom quietly and closed the door behind him.

Sora sighed and rubbed his head, stuffing the key back into his jacket and looking at Riku's bed. "Bet he smells cool too…" he huffed to himself, hugging his knees. Sora, for instance, smelled like milk, or so he had been told by the maids. Riku probably smelled like something manlier, perhaps smoke or earth… Yeah.

Riku washed his face under the cool stream of water, hoping the coldness would help him wake up. He felt somewhat sorry for Sora. He knew he was being a jerk… But he still couldn't help but feel that nasty need to not pay attention to him and only concentrate on himself. After all, his life turned upside down overnight. He needed time.

He quietly reached for the soap, cleaning himself with a tiny yawn and stretching. He was soon enough out of the shower, dressed in a pair of boxers and brushing his teeth. Maybe he should at least give Sora a smile? He used to smile quite often back home… Sure, those smiles were mostly lopsided and or mocking, but he had a few genuine ones… Why was smiling such a hard task now?

Riku brought the towel up to his hair, towel drying it as he exited the bathroom, still feeling a bit lethargic. His mind was elsewhere but regretfully his body was _here_. The silveret sighed as he closed the bedroom door behind himself. Sea green eyes glanced over across the room at Sora who appeared to be sleeping on his bed. Was he asleep?...

"Is he sleeping?" Riku wondered allowed, slowly lowering the white towel from his hair (and god, it was so damn soft, too). The silver haired teen gently ambled across the room and took a seat on the edge of the bed, eying the brunet with something akin to curiosity.

A small snore emitted from Sora. He was curled up near the head of the bed, tightly clutching the pillow. Blue eyes were lidded and thin, brown eyelashes rested upon tanned cheeks. The small teen looked so vulnerable in such a state—and peaceful. He looked immensely peaceful.

Riku murmured something under his breath and finished drying his hair. "If I be nice to him, what will that get me? Nothing, that's what. So why should I bother?" For some reason, a small part of Riku _wanted_ to bother with trying to be _decently_ kind. Trying would not hurt, right?

Though… "Damn, he looks so at ease when he sleeps," Riku noted inaudibly, eying the small brunet.

Sora stirred slightly and hunched his shoulders before falling back into peaceful slumber.

Riku sighed and reached to tuck a brown lock behind Sora's ear. "Hey… Wake up…" he murmured half-heartedly, not really wanting to wake the brunette up.

The younger teen sighed softly in his sleep and leaned into Riku's touch, smiling in his sleep.

The silver haired teen cocked his brow. "No way," he huffed under his breath, raking his hand through Sora's chocolaty mane once and watching as the teen followed his hand, craning his neck in the process.

_What. The. Hell. _Riku shook his head _Is this kid for real? Did hid parents not hug him when he was little or something?_ He took a deep breath in, running his thumb along Sora's temple, watching for further response.

Sora moaned quietly and rubbed his head against Riku's hand, smiling.

Then again, Riku would not have been surprised to find that the boy's parents _did not_ hug him when he was little. Considering that they would buy the boy a slave and all…they did not seem like material for 'parents of the month'. Regardless, it was still a puzzling situation. Very puzzling, indeed. Of course, everyone human craves some form of physical affection from someone else, whether it be a hug or a friendly touch—we never really ever get over the motherly affection we were once given.

Riku's eyebrows knitted together in utter curiosity as he brushed his nimble fingers a bit shakily along the curve of the brunet's forehead. The silveret watched in complete shock as Sora remained sleeping peacefully, moving his body closer to the warm touch, smiling dreamily all the while.

"Even in his sleep this kid is overly happy," Riku remarked to himself as he lightly lowered his fingertips down to the brunet's cheekbones, tracing it with the pads of his fingers. The boy was not all that skinny, nor was he fat. He seemed almost childish… "Sheltered is more like it," Riku decided in a cocky mutter as he removed his hand all together.

A quiet groan of disapproval came from the slumbering teen.

Riku snickered and shook his head. "Wake up," he sighed, shaking Sora's shoulder again.

The brunette huffed and blinked hard before opening his eyes and letting a tiny, sleepy moan.

"You fell asleep on my bed," Riku informed Sora, crossing his hands over his chest.

"Oh? Sorry…" Sora murmured, sitting up and offering Riku a sleepy smile. "I had a really nice dream," he hummed, stretching and leaning back against the wall. "It was weird… I stopped dreaming almost three years ago, and this was the first time I've had a dream since." He cleared his throat and leaned back against the wall.

"Really?" Riku wondered, leaning with his elbows over his knees, eyes closing by instinct.

"Yeah. I dreamed about the rain and how it fell over my face." The brunette grinned, hands placed casually on his knees.

"That's interesting…" the older teen replied dryly, running his fingers through his moist hair.

"I think it's because you smell like the rain…" Sora whispered, shrugging shyly and half expecting Riku to snap at him.

And Riku would have snapped at Sora—he had every intention to because he really wasn't in the mood to have odd conversations with the odd boy—but something Sora had said triggered a reaction in Riku's mind. If he, Riku, reminded Sora of rain…and Sora had dreamt about the rain on his face… had he felt and incorporated the small touches Riku had given the brunet _into_ his thoughts and therefore _dreamed_? Was that plausible, even?

"I see," Riku answered shortly and then went on to ask, "And how exactly did this rain feel?" He tried to sound sincere and patient. It was hard, but he managed to sound decently curious, because really, he _was_.

"Nice," Sora said with a softened expression. "Relaxing, sorta. It felt really good. Next time it rains I want to see if it feels the same," the brunet informed Riku with a chuckle and glanced over to Riku, noticing how contemplative the older looked.

Pause. "Is something wrong, Riku?"

_Would you care if there was?..._ "No," Riku promptly lied.

Sora had gotten used to Riku's lies by now so he simply just accepted them as the truth—even though Sora knew better. "Oh, okay." Sora rested the back of his head against the wall, eyes slipping shut briefly. "Are you hungry? We can have breakfast, if you want?"

"I'm not hungry," Riku stated, eyes wandering over to the other teen's form. "I don't have much of an appetite lately." Riku figured Sora knew why.

Sora nodded and ruffled his own hair, eyes remaining closed. "Wanna go outside then? We could go to the pool… We still have a few hours before I have to get ready for my lessons."

"Lessons?" Riku cocked a brow, eyeing Sora quietly.

"Mmhm. My parents didn't want me to go to a school after they heard in the news about some kid selling drugs at his school, and how violence was a very common thing there… So they just hired tutors for me to study with. I went to school for a few years…but then they took me out because…er people were picking on me," the younger teen explained uneasily, drumming his fingers over his knees.

"I see…" Riku drawled, frowning. _No wonder the kid is so sheltered… He's barely gone to school!_

"Hey Riku… What is school like nowadays?" A sudden question made its way to the older teen's ears. "I watched some movies where kids have those really cool lockers and all… And they get detentions… But… You know, I've never really been into one for that long to know, so… What are schools like?"

And to think that Riku had gone from being a normal kid, to a slave, and then to explaining to another teenager what _school_ was like. This was … quite the sudden change. "It's boring," Riku stated slowly. "All it is is a popularity contest between the best dressed, the sluttiest, the prettiest, and the richest. You barely learn anything. The only real good thing is the people you meet there. But then again, it's rare that you find someone worth a damn."

Sora's lips went from an upturned smile to a large frown. "That's…disappointing," Sora whispered. "Is that why you're such an angry person?" It was a sincere question from a sincere person.

Riku tensed and then shifted his gaze away from the other teen. "No, Sora." _That's not why. School didn't make me pissed off. _

"Oh," Sora said and then blinked. "I'm sorry. I just assumed…"

"It's fine," Riku said quickly, rubbing his forehead vigorously. "School's fine. It's not as bad as I make it out to be. It has its ups and downs, I assure you." Riku exhaled deeply and dragged a hand through his silvery hair.

Sora nodded briskly, as if to show that he understood. "Thanks." Another pause. "Still wanna go down to the pool?" Sora tilted his head to the left.

"Sure, why not," he sighed, standing up and placing his hands on his hips.

"One minute then. I'll ask the maids to get you a pair of swimming trunks." Sora grinned, jumping off the bed and pressing one of the buttons near the door, calling a maid over and telling her to bring Riku a pair of trunks.

The silver haired teen leaned idly against his desk, going through the books Sora gave him to pass some time.

"Do you see anything you like?" Sora grinned, hands crossed behind his head as he studied Riku with intense curiosity.

Riku looked down at the books for a moment. "I used to like 'The Little Prince'," he said, showing Sora a thin book featuring a blond boy with curly hair and a star-patterned cloak.

"I really like that one too, even though it's a story for kids, it still makes you wanna smile and hug someone, doesn't it?" Sora chuckled, offering Riku a warm smile and a shrug.

"Yeah…" Riku looked down again with a frown, placing the book back into the pile and running a hand through his hair.

"You _can_ swim, right?" Sora wondered as he eyed Riku with a serious look scrolled across his face. "If you can't, that'd be horrible! You can, _right_?" Sora asked a second time, a bit more insistent than the first.

"Of course," Riku lamented, arching a brow, as if offended. "Who _doesn't_ know how to swim nowadays?" Yes, he did seem offended.

Sora gulped quickly and began flailing about, trying to dismiss the uneasiness that had just landed between them. "I'm sorry, Riku! I just thought…I don't know. I just figured some people never learned how to swim." He hung his head lowly in shame. "I jump to conclusions a lot, I'm sorry."

_Him apologizing is giving me a damn headache. _"It's fine," Riku reiterated, feeling like that phrase was going to become his slogan soon.

"All right, good," Sora responded as he walked over to the room's door. Once there, Sora awaited the maid who arrived a few moments later. The pretty blonde girl handed Sora a pair of black trunks. Once having given the garment to him, she politely bowed, giggled, and wandered off.

"Here ya go!" Sora declared as he bounced over, gleefully handed Riku the trunks with a light shade of pink dancing onto his cheeks. An all too obvious _blush_.

"You like that girl or something?" Riku cocked a brow.

"Huh? What? No." Sora frowned, rubbing his nose. "I don't… At least I don't think I do. How do you know when you really like someone, anyway?"

Riku stared at him for a few moments before muttering a small 'nevermind' and making his way back to the bathroom, swimming trunks at hand.

Sora hummed and took 'The Little Prince' in his hands, tracing his index finger over the hard binding of the book. A small smile made it to his lips, as did a blush.

Riku liked that book too…

Riku returned a few moments later with the black trunks now garbed upon him. Aquamarine hues glanced over at Sora, noticing how engulfed in the child's book Sora was. A brow was arched before he cleared his throat. This drew Sora's attention at once to the older boy. Before Sora had time to speak, he noticed something he hadn't earlier before the maid arrived.

There were bruises. Lots of them. All over Riku's back and sides. Not so much on his chest or legs. Just…bruises everywhere, small, but there. The brunet blinked slowly. They looked fresh. There were no scars, just those _bruises_. Did they do that to him when they brought him here?...

"What are you staring at?" Riku asked curtly, tapping his hands against the door to the bathroom.

"Nothing," Sora whispered quickly, putting the book down onto the desk before scurrying over to Riku quickly. "I'll meet you down at the pool, okay? I have to go change into my own trunks." Sora beamed at Riku, though a small blush remained on his tanned skin.

"Whatever," Riku murmured and waved Sora off, leaving the room before him, once again like the night prior.

Riku frowned and kicked the marble floor idly. Sora was definitely_ staring._ Why?

Sora, upon arriving to his room, quickly pulled his yellow trunks on, and replaced his jacket with a plain white sleeveless tee, and grabbing a pair of his personal towels for him and for Riku.

The two boys were soon enough reunited, with Sora looking overjoyed and Riku thoughtful and somewhat gloomy, as usual.

"Here. I got you a towel." Sora grinned with triumph, handing Riku a huge, blue towel with a bubbly print.

"Thanks…" the older teen replied quietly, draping the towel around his shoulders and sighing as he followed Sora outside, eyes remaining mostly closed. He didn't feel like talking, so he shot down each one of Sora's questions with a flat, monotone answer, until the younger male finally gave up, hanging his head low and just leading them both quietly outside.

When the pair of boys reached the pool, Sora scurried over to the edge, placing his towel down onto the marble edging around the large pool. Without a word, the brunet plunged into the massive pool, not wanting to waste any more time. In his mind, he wondered if the pool-water felt anything like the rain?... He doubted it. This didn't feel _anything_ like his dream.

Riku trudged over to the edge of the pool, eying the brunet who was swimming about like a fish that had just been reunited with its lovely water. Sea green hues watched Sora for a long while. He really wasn't interested in entering the water, so he simply sat down, his legs dangling over the edge. His feet touched the surface of the pool, but he made no attempt to enter the water itself.

Riku took this moment to look around and reflect. This house was probably a hundred times bigger than the one he used to live in prior to this. Hell, they didn't even have a pool, and here was one, the size of a hotel swimming pool. Riku groaned under his breath, a bit irked at how _spoiled_ Sora seemed to be. Why hadn't _he_ had all these things when he was growing up? It seemed unfair.

That was when Riku noticed that Sora had swum over. The silveret glanced down at Sora, eying the teen with dull curiosity. "Hey, Riku!" Sora chirped, his enthusiasm never once ceasing. All the while he spoke, his brunet locks of hair clung to the sides of his face, making him appear even more vulnerable than usual.

"Mm?" the older teen replied casually, leaning back on his arms and sighing.

"Come in! The water's great!" the brunette grinned, shaking his head and making droplets fly all over, ending up looking like a wet kitten.

Riku snickered at that, and shook his head. "No thanks… I don't really feel like swimming."

"What? No way!" Sora frowned, making it to the edge and leaning with his elbows against it.

"Surprise surprise," Riku sighed and shook his head, shrugging once.

Sora kept quiet for a few moments, eyeing Riku cautiously before finally snickering and simply yanking him into the water.

_And I should have expected that.__ I mean, always expect the cliché things, right? Good grief! And- This water is freezing!_ Riku's thoughts were cut short when his body lost significant heat as he was dragged into the water. Green eyes flashed open as he gasped for air for no particular reason. Riku flailed a bit before regaining his composure. At least his head was above water.

The silveret turned to the other teenager beside him, wading happily. "That was uncalled for," Riku stated coldly, sending daggers to the brunet.

Sora flinched a bit. "Come on, cheer up…please?" Sora nudged Riku's shoulder, offering the silver haired teen a bright, Sora smile. To prove his point, Sora splashed some water onto Riku's very dry looking hair.

"Hey!" Riku complained, feeling the cold water trickle down the back of his head. Cold. Cold. Cold.

"Haha! Come on! Loosen up a bit!" Sora chuckled, splashing some more water over Riku and grinning at him.

Riku narrowed his eyes. _Must resist the urge to drown Sora. Must resist the urge to drown Sora. Must resist… GAH._ Riku groaned, and with a huge splash, shoved Sora's head down beneath the surface.

A few moments later the brunette rose back up, coughing and spitting water. Riku half expected him to get angry and try dunking Riku, but none of that happened.

"See?" Sora grinned. "That was fun!" he chirped, taking a few deep breathes in before snickering and splashing some more water at Riku, tongue pressing out against the corner of his mouth.

Riku was surprised at the turn of events. Sora hadn't begun yelling at him. Nor was he trying to kill him either. The silveret arched a brow. His surprise was short lived. Riku grunted angrily when the water hit him once more. _Twerp. He's going to pay for this. Doesn't he realize I'm not in the mood for games? I just want to relax, damnit._ Growling under his breath, Riku caught Sora's arms in mid-air and securely took a hold of them, one arm in each hand. Their eyes met briefly before he shoved Sora forward a bit, under the water this time.

Sora's entire body submerged, as if he was lying on the water and had fallen downwards. Riku was partly submerged as well, holding the startled boy under as he began to hesitantly fight back, kicking and flailing.

But on Sora's face wasn't fear, no, it was amusement. The brunet lunged forward out of Riku's shocked grasp. Sora, having flung himself forward, surfaced with Riku, clinging to the other's male's chest. His thin arms were woven around Riku's torso, his breath heavy as he attempted to laugh giddily. "Wow," he said in between small laughs, still clinging.

Riku groaned. Really, what was Sora thinking? He was just about to pry him away when Sora spoke again.

"Hey… Riku?" he asked, face serious all of a sudden.

"What is it?" the older teen sighed, hands resting at his sides.

"Does it hurt?" the brunette murmured, lowering his look and eyeing Riku's chest briefly. "The bruises… Do they hurt?" He blinked, finger gently tracing against the slightly developed muscles of Riku's chest.

Sora had to admit… He was jealous. Compared to Riku, his chest was so flat and… Strangely girly. Maybe because it was so delicate?

"…Not really," Riku replied darkly after a long moment, voice stiff, as he tried to not let the anger and frustration to leak outside.

Sora sighed. "I wish you'd stop lying to me, Riku. It's making me feel really bad…I just want to know more about you and help you," the brunet whispered, his fingers drearily running along the bruises, wincing at how they must feel. Riku was doing a good job of covering up the pain. A beautiful job, actually.

"What makes you think I'm lying?" Riku demanded, a bit irked, but nonetheless surprised. Sora was perceptive? Since when?

Sora rolled his shoulders into a shrug. "I don't know. I just think you're lying. These bruises look really bad." He paused and then gulped, forcing the next few words out of his mouth. "Did my…Father do any of this to you, Riku?" He was terrified to know.

"I don't remember," Riku muttered, uncertain if that was truly a lie or not.

And Sora asked either way. "Is that a lie too, Riku?"

Riku turned his gaze away. "What does it matter?"

"Because I care," Sora stated quietly, nonetheless, his voice was very firm.

"Why? You've barely known me for two days." Riku shrugged, gaze remaining averted.

Sora kept quiet for a few long moments. "Because you're the only one I got to know for real." He whispered and lowered his head. It was true though- everyone else always treated him like he was made out of glass. They always did what he wanted, said what they knew would make him pleased… Even his parents, beyond raising him to know manners, never did speak to him harshly, or ignored him.

Riku did. And somehow, that just made Sora happy.

"Trust me, you don't want to get to know me 'for real'. I'm not worth knowing, really," Riku grumbled darkly, keeping his gaze away from Sora at all costs. Something about Sora's tone made the silveret quiver just the slightest. Something sounded so _desperate_ and _needy_ that Riku almost submitted to it. And that scared the older. Badly.

"Riku-"

"I get it. I was bought for your amusement. For you to use me however you please. Go ahead. I'm done with trying to act normally," Riku muttered resentfully, the water making gooseflesh appear on his arms and down his legs. But was it really the water?

"Riku! Don't say that!" Sora complained, shaking his head to the right and then to the left. Without thinking, he grabbed each of Riku's cheeks, regardless of how mad he knew Riku would be. "I don't think of you as a slave, doofus! Please don't ever say that again. You're my _friend_, okay?"

Riku jerked his face out of Sora's grasps. "Friend. What a friend I am. My own bathroom is locked. Yeah. That's certainly friend-like."

Sora sighed and loosened his grip around Riku entirely. "…nothing I ever say will change how much you hate me, I guess?"

Riku pursed his lips and closed his eyes. "I already told you that what I feel doesn't matter." He muttered, closing his eyes.

"Yes it does!" Sora huffed, shaking Riku's shoulders slightly. "Look… I know you're mad at just about anything right now but… Would you please listen? I know you think I'm a bother and I speak nonsense all the time, but you gotta believe me when I say that I _do_ care because you were the first one that ever treated me like a real person…" His voice died quietly, leaving Sora limp in Riku's arms as he squeezed his eyes shut.

"And even if you hurt me or ignore me… It feels good… Because I know it's for real, and not some facade you're putting up with so I wouldn't be hurt…" he whispered, hunching his shoulders and swallowing hard.

Riku blinked in sheer confusion. _I would think a kid like him would be happy being treated like a Prince…_ Riku's thoughts were cut off when he noticed something that was not a bead of water. No. That was something different. A tear? Riku bit his bottom lip awkwardly, noticing how hard the younger was trying not to let the tears fall. In fact, Sora was gritting his teeth and tightly holding his eyes closed, hoping the tears would not escape.

"Why don't you punish me for hurting you? For ignoring you? Are you that desperate?" The words may have sounded harsh but the tone they were spoken in was oddly gentle and downright curious.

Sora wearily cracked open his eyes, staring briefly up at the other, ashamed for the salty beads that were dripping down his cheeks. "I suppose… Maybe I'm just a pathetic, desperate kid after all. I mean, I'm nothing special. I know that."

Riku shrugged. "I guess."

Sora had _wished_ for a more reassuring answer. Something that would make him smile and then end up in a hug. But what he got was a typical, laconic answer. He looked away and briefly nodded, shivering a bit due to the cold water. Perhaps they should just end this conversation. It wasn't getting anywhere. Riku was the same old cold person he had started as the day prior. There was no changing him.

Riku pursed his lips once more and shook his head, sighing. "Look… Whatever it is, I'm not worth it, okay?"

Sora shrugged and sniffled once. "I don't care," he murmured, voice coarse with strained tears.

"Why?" the older teen whispered, placing his hands over Sora's shoulders and eyeing him quietly. "Why the hell would someone like you take interest in me?"

"I already told you why…" Sora growled, shaking his head and swallowing quietly. "And even if you tell me not to care, I can't." He shrugged. "I'm just pathetic like that."

Riku sighed and rubbed his forehead. "You are such a mess.." he sighed, letting his head roll back as his eyes remained close. "Any normal person would have started hating me by now because of my behavior… Yet you find it real and like it." He snickered despite himself. "You're just… Weird. You put up with stuff people end relationships because of… And you somehow manage to smile through the whole thing…" He took a deep breath in before turning to look back at Sora.

"Wash your face. Tears don't suit you," Riku murmured finally, giving Sora's shoulders a tiny squeeze before leaving the boy on his own and getting out of the pool.

Sora watched in confusion as the older male left the pool. Blue eyes blinked a few times at the silver haired male, quietly observing him walking around the perimeter of the pool to snag the towels they had brought down. "He's…being nice?" Sora wondered to himself, shivering from the cold pool water.

With a final shake of his head, Sora swam over to the edge of the water and hoisted himself out of the pool at last. He inhaled deeply before daring to walk over to Riku, all the while rubbing under his eyes with his curled up knuckles, hoping to wipe away any trace of earlier fallen tears.

When Sora reached Riku's side, over near the entrance back into the house, the older silently handed Sora one of the towel. He said nothing as he graciously took it, drying his soaking, brown hair and then his water-covered chest. Silence remained for a few minutes before Sora lowered the towel from his hair and risked a glance up at the quiet Riku.

"Thanks," Sora said gently, holding the towel limply between his fingers as he offered the tinniest of smiles to the other.

"It was nothing," Riku murmured with a shrug, taking Sora's towel and hanging it over his shoulder.

Sora licked his lips and swallowed. "Do… You wanna come to my room later?" he questioned, gaze returning back to his feet.

Riku shrugged in reply. "I don't mind," he answered, fingers meshing Sora's towel absently.

"I'll ask someone to bring up breakfast then. Do you want pancakes or an omelet?" the brunette pondered, hands drumming over his sides.

"Pancakes," Riku answered finally, opening his eyes and casting Sora a brief look before turning back to the walkway in front of him.

Sora beamed brightly at Riku and hurried back into the house, headed straight towards the kitchen. Riku, meanwhile, trudged back up the stairs quietly, not bothering to stop by and say any greetings to either the Mother or Father of the household. He really didn't want to converse with those people. Nope. Not one bit. They had gotten him into this mess and he wasn't, at all, going to be a _good little boy_.

Riku entered Sora's room a bit disdainful. Really, he would have liked to rather have gone back to his own room and have slept, but plans had changed. Regardless, he closed Sora's door behind himself with a gentle thump. He would have stopped by his own room to get new clothes but the walk was far too long and he wasn't in the mood to do that either…

Sora returned around five minutes later. He entered the room and left the door open. "They'll be up in ten minutes!" Sora declared benevolently as he took a seat next to Riku on his bed.

And Riku was back in that large room again. How he hated it… "All right, then," Riku answered simply, resting his hands idly on the blankets below them. "That's good, I suppose."

"Yep!" Sora stated joyfully.

"Hey, are you still tired?" the brunette hummed. "You can sleep on my bed if you want to, I'll just play some video games on mute." He nodded, gesturing over the bed. "I'll wake you up when breakfast is here." Sora then smiled at the other teen.

Riku sighed and looked back at the bed. Well… He could use some sleep, that's for sure… So he let himself lean back and make his way to the pile of pillows, slumping his head against them and closing his eyes. Sleep was the best way Riku could think of to pass time.

Sora sighed and turned of one of the consuls, inserting the cd from the other day inside and slumping in front of the tv, legs crossed behind him in the chair.

As Riku slept, he twitched uncomfortably, forgotten memories plaguing his restless mind. He was starting to remember parts of how he ended up here. The auction…he started remembering that. The shackles. The beatings before he ended up here in Sora's care. Riku barely remembered coming to the house. The memories about his mom were still cloudy, though. He had no idea _why_ she did it and _how_ he was captured. Regardless, the memories of the auction was all he needed to be tortured in his sleep.

A soft whining noise emitted from between Riku's parted, sleeping lips. Sora paused the game, having already been playing for a good half an hour. Sora watched Riku's slumbering body for a moment before the noise began. Sora blinked and scooted off the chair and on his knees, over to the side of the bed. There, Sora sat on his knees, looking up at Riku's face that appeared to be twisted in pain.

"Riku?" Sora whispered worriedly, watching the silveret twitch a bit in his sleep. A large frown appeared on Sora's lips as he reached out. However, before he could touch Riku, he recoiled, withdrawing his arm. "Perhaps I shouldn't touch him…he'd get mad…" Sora reasoned aloud, the frown growing.

Riku growled and clawed the pillow. Why did he have to remember all of it right now? He would much rather not, thank you very much.

Sora licked his lips and lowered his eyes. "Riku… It's okay. You're safe now," he murmured, tone soft and comforting.

The older teen twisted once before relaxing, the frown on his face softening a bit.

"I'm here and… And even if you won't let me, I still wanna help…" Sora whispered, lowering his look to his hands and hunching his shoulders. "Please don't be sad. It's just a dream…"

Riku sighed quietly and let his hand relax, slowly sinking his face into the pillow.

Sora smiled. "There… Just… Think about something nice, okay? Like your favorite book or something… Your favorite fantasy book!"

Riku moaned softly and shifted, but otherwise looked eased.

Sora observed Riku for a long while, allowing the silveret the sleep he so did deserve. Innocent blue eyes watched the pale male sleep, completely enthralled by him. Not even his game seemed more interesting than making sure Riku slept soundly. The brunet leaned his chin down onto the top of the bed, remaining on his knees beside it. Heavy eyelids lidded halfway over blue hues as he surveyed Riku once again.

"He looks really pretty when he's peaceful," Sora remarked to himself, gently yawning at the end of his soft-spoken words. A smile crept up onto the boy's lips, glad that Riku was sleeping soundly.

"Whoever broke his heart must have been an idiot," Sora mumbled to himself, keeping his gaze locked with the beautiful boy's body. "It's sad…" he concluded in a whisper as he rested his hands on the bed as well, his chin still digging down onto the covers. He would have gotten _on_ the bed but he didn't want to make Riku angrier or uncomfortable.

So he just sat beside it, trying his best not to fall asleep as well.

Sora sighed softly and kept inspecting Riku's body quietly, eyes exploring every curve and angle, soaking everything in. It was a bit pathetic, Sora remarked mentally, but counting beauty spots over the visible patches of Riku's skin was highly enjoyable.

The older boy remained very much asleep, though some of the gentle words registered in Riku's mind, making him moan softly and lean at the sound's general direction, a somewhat childish expression written all over his face.

Sora purred and reached to gently tuck an annoying strand of hair behind Riku's ear, making the boy stir slightly, but nothing more.

"I don't get why you won't open up to me," Sora whispered, his fingers shakily brushing past Riku's angel soft hair. The brunet boy was fascinated by the hair and how soft it truly was. It was such a contrast to his own that he had a hard time believing hair could be this soft and look so good at the same time.

Sora's hand had begun to travel down to rest on the male's cheek, wanting nothing more than friendship from this teen. All Sora wanted was a friend who would be honest and sincere. He didn't care if they got moody. Nor did he care if they were mean. He just wanted someone who wouldn't lie to him to make him _feel_ better.

Sora's hand was caught before two fingers could touch Riku's cheek. Blues eyes widened in alarm as he felt another warm hand on his own. The young teen's breath caught in his throat as he nervously looked away, not wanting to witness angry aquamarine eyes opening.

"What are you doing?" the older asked in a quiet, sleepy murmur. He did nothing to throw Sora's hand away—he just held it limply with his own.

"I… I'm sorry…" Sora gulped, hunching his shoulders. "I.. Um…" _Just wanted to touch your cheek? Can't really tell him that, now can I?_ Sora thought bitterly, not daring to move his hand away.

Riku groaned quietly and let his hand slide back on the mattress, releasing Sora's hand with a quiet 'whatever'.

Sora sighed and swallowed thickly, eyeing Riku a few moments more before cupping his cheek with his hand, thumb racing along the sharp bone just under his eye. He smiled, Riku's skin was warm from sleep, and somehow it made Sora melt just a bit on the inside.

He kept on with the simple action for a while, dragging his thumb across Riku's cheekbone and watching the teen in his sleep, before Sora decided to move his index finger and run it along Riku's brow, smiling at the smooth feeling he got from the small gesture.

Riku had fallen into a half-slumber at this point. The silveret was barely awake, but he wasn't awake enough to fully comprehend the situation. All he cared about was that he was sleeping and he felt entirely warm from head to toe. The little details didn't matter at this moment. They would in the future—just not right now.

"Uhm…are you awake?" Sora dared, his fingers returning to trembling as he brushed them down the curve of Riku's cheek, still very much riveted by the softness. It would disappoint Sora, a bit, if Riku pushed his hand away now.

"Not really," Riku mumbled lethargically, his other cheek digging in against the pillow as silver hair pooled over his shoulders, landing onto the very top of his exposed skin. Aquamarine eyes fluttered shut once more, having only been open for a maximum of two minutes.

"I take it you like to sleep a lot, huh?" Sora wondered, fingers timorously caressing the older teen's cheek, the smile returning on Sora's face. At least Riku hadn't yelled. That was the good part.

"Mhm," Riku answered tiredly, his neck turning the slightest, causing his head to move up as well—more into Sora's warm touch.

The brunet blinked curiously as a small blush appeared on his tanned cheeks.

"T'feels… Nice…" Riku murmured, rubbing his cheek against Sora's hand and yawning quietly.

"Thanks, I guess…" Sora whispered back, fingers slipping occasionally to Riku's hair, dragging along the fine, silvery strands. "Man… I wish I had hair like yours," Sora sighed, leaning his cheek on the pillow next to Riku and closing his eyes. "It's so pretty and it feels nice…" he whispered, lowering his head gently. "Mine is just lame."

"T'sokay…" Riku murmured, hugging the pillow he was sleeping on with a tiny yawn. "Color is… Nice… In the sun…"

"Would it bother you if I …got up on the bed too?" Sora asked uneasily, his eyes slowly cracking open to stare at the tired teenager beside him. Half of Sora was expecting Riku to heavily mind and another part of him wanted Riku to say he didn't mind at all. The brunet bit onto his bottom lip anxiously.

"Go ahead," Riku mumbled.

It wasn't an 'I don't mind at all', but it was a go ahead and that was getting _somewhere_. Sora grinned from ear to ear and carefully removed his hand from Riku's hair. A small groan slipped Riku's lips, at once missing the motherly touch. Quickly, though, Sora hoisted his skinny body up and onto the bed next to the older, making sure not to lay too close. He didn't want Riku freaking out at him for being weird.

A moment of silence passed as Sora got comfortable next to the taller teen.

"Hey, Riku?" Sora asked quietly, snagging a pillow himself and propping his head onto it. Blue eyes watched Riku intensely, making note of any movements that Riku did.

"Hm?..." Riku murmured, his words drawling—an obvious sign of his lethargic state.

"Why are you being so cold?" Sora murmured shyly, cheeks gaining the faintest of color.

"M'confused… N'angry…. Scared…" Riku moaned back, pressing his nose against the pillow.

Sora lowered his gaze and swallowed quietly. He would ask why, but he already knew the answer. "Can I do anything to help you feel better?" he whispered, swallowing once again.

"Keep… Hand in hair…" came a lazy reply from the sleepy teen as he gently craned his neck, offering Sora more of his mane that he could bury his hands inside.

"You won't yell at me, right?" Sora asked a bit apprehensively. The brunet cautiously moved his hand back towards Riku's hair, hovering until he got an acceptable response. Riku may like the touch now, but when he awoke fully he may hate it and get ticked off at Sora. And Sora really didn't want that anymore.

"Nah," Riku grumbled under his breath, his breathing quieting as he felt the reigns of sleep pull harder at his exhausted body. "It's…nice," he mumbled against the pillow, hoping Sora would take the hint.

Sora smiled gaily. "Okay," Sora said calmly and allowed his fingers to once again thread themselves through Riku's hair. It was so soft and relaxing…and almost spell-binding. Sora loved it, in every single sense of the word.

And within ten minutes, Sora himself had fallen asleep, his hand falling down against Riku's as he snored softly in his own sleep.


	3. chapter three

_cowriteeee updateeee.  
i'm farily certain that this is the next chapter. :D... yeah. reread the last one for a refresher, i suppose. i love this story. haha it's so fun. oh. but it's going to get complicated. poor riku. that's all i can say.

* * *

_

**incubus**

It was a bit later that a man entered the room that the pair was currently sleeping in. The tall brunette quietly studied the room with his grey eyes. Well… This room was extremely… Blue. Not that he had anything against the color of blue, he just liked grey better. And then his eyes landed on a goop of brown and silver, curled together under the blankets, seemingly undressed.

"…Didn't know he was gay," he murmured and then shrugged, dragging the vacuum cleaner behind him and plugging it into the electricity.

Riku twitched in his sleep when he heard a buzzing noise. No, that was not the sound of looming death. Nor was it the sound of crackling whips or screams of the undead. No, it was something annoying. Riku's nose scrunched up several times as he subconsciously shifted closer to Sora, burying his nose into the brunet's soft hair to somehow block out the noise. No matter what he did he couldn't get the noise to go away. It was a constant, loud 'grr'. And worst of all…Sora had begun to stir as well. And that caused Riku to fall more into the realm of reality.

"Hm?" Sora blinked awake, his tired eyes glancing at Riku's neck and chest that was in his sight of vision. A small blush appeared on the shorter's cheeks as he quickly looked off to the side, struggling to keep his eyes open. Stupid heavy eyelids, they always seemed to want to fall close again. Perhaps he needed more sleep?

"Morning, Master Sora," said a voice as the vacuum cleaner was temporarily muted.

Peace. Riku fell back into slumber at once, his arms tightening around the brunet in his dreams. Sora, on the other hand, remained awake, his eyes flashing nervously over the covers to where Leon smugly stood, leaning against the cleaner with a wicked grin on his face. Oh, the embarrassment. "H-hi, Leon," Sora stated, a sheepish smile forming on his lips.

Riku twitched his nose. Sora was talking to someone. Regretfully, the silveret stirred awake. Aquamarine eyes were greeted with a bit panicky blue ones. It wasn't until he heard someone clear their throat that he noticed the third body in the room. Riku's eyes instantly snapped over to the tall brunet who was eying the pair curiously. And was that a glint of jealousy?

"How are you today?!" Sora asked quickly, offering a _huge_ smile towards Leon.

"I'm fine. My vacation was very refreshing, Master Sora." The older brunette answered, drumming his fingers against his thigh.

Riku groaned and rubbed his eyes. _Who the hell is that guy?_

Sora nodded and quickly sat up. "I'm glad you're back!" He grinned, swallowing. "It wasn't the same without you here."

Riku cocked a brow. Okay… What? Why was Sora all fidgety?

"Thank you. I missed you too, Master Sora." Leon answered quietly, closing his eyes and pursing his lips.

"Well… Meet Riku, he's my friend. I met him a few days ago, he's very nice and cool." Sora nodded, gesturing over his sleep-ish companion.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Leon sighed, bowing in front of Riku courtly.

"…Yeah, me too." Riku frowned, eyeing the tall man. He… Did not like him. At all.

"Leon, uhm..." Sora trailed off and glanced over to the silveret with a sheepish smile written on his face. "Leon's been working here for a few years and he's really nice. Other than you he's been the only person around here that treats me like a real person." Sora grinned.

Riku nodded knowingly and glanced over at Sora. _Why is he blushing and stuttering like that?_ The silveret looked over to Leon and offered an obviously fake smile. "Well then…"

Awkward silence reigned supreme over the trio. "Leon! Do you want to have lunch later with Riku and I?" Sora asked curiously, grinning happily at the older brunet.

"Sure, why not," Leon decided and kicked the vacuum cleaner across the room. "I'll be back later to clean the room when you two are gone," he explained and then bowed politely. "See you at lunch then, Master Sora."

Riku sighed and brushed his hand through his hair. He… Did not…. Approve of Leon. At all. The guy seemed to undress Sora with his eyes and Sora was acting like a hormonal school girl.

"Isn't he nice?" Sora grinned, finally calming down and squeezing the blanket between his fingers.

"I suppose." Riku sighed and slumped back. "I'm still tired, let's go back to sleep."

Sora eyed his quietly for a few moments. "But I don't wanna keep Leon waiting…" he finally murmured, looking pleadingly at Riku. It was no use though, Riku simply yanked him back under the covers and wrapped his arm against him. Sora swallowed and curled against Riku with a quiet huff. He didn't like the fact he was going to be late and probably disappoint Leon but… Riku's touch felt way too comfortable to decline.

"Riku?" Sora asked after a moment of brief silence.

"What?" Riku murmured as he kept Sora close to his body, greedily taking in the brunet's warmth as he protected him from the _other_ brunet who was probably a class-a rapist or something of the sort. Riku _really, really_ didn't like his first impression of the vacuum wielding man at all.

"You're…really holding tightly," Sora noted with an uneasy laugh as he remained still in Riku's grasp, making no move to break away from it, however. "Can you…loosen your grip just a bit, please?"

Riku blinked and then glanced away embarrassedly. "Sorry," Riku muttered and loosened his grip, as instructed. Silence…and then, "I don't feel like having lunch today."

Sora lowered his look. "Really? I guess I'll be having lunch alone with Leon then…" He murmured, shrugging once.

Riku frowned. He couldn't tell Sora not to go, right? Right. "How about we eat at the pool?" He offered, looking somewhat thoughtful.

"That's a great idea but… Leon couldn't accompany us then!" Sora shook his head. "And I promised him we would eat lunch together. I missed him…" He sighed and shook his head, much to Riku's dismay.

"I see…" The older male sighed, shifting against the pillow. "That's too bad… I thought we could maybe swim together sometime." He hummed, hoping that bribing Sora would do the trick. Then again, why was Riku so determined to make sure Sora didn't see Leon more than he needed to? Well, Riku didn't know himself. He just, as already stated vehemently, did not like the guy one ounce.

"Really?" Sora glanced up from his hiding spot against Riku's chest. Blue eyes glimmered playfully. "I bet I could get my Dad to allow Leon to take off an hour so he can eat lunch with us there and swim! I haven't done that with him in so long!"

Shirtless? Shirtless pervert with a shirtless, adorable boy? Riku tensed and swallowed down a thick lump of nerves. "Do you…think he'll agree to this? Leon, I mean…"

"Of course he will! He enjoys spending time with me…I think," Sora stated thoughtfully and then hugged Riku tightly. "And Daddy will say yes because he wants me to become more social! I'm so happy! I'll get to spend time with the both of you _and_ swim with you guys!"

What had Riku just _done_? Riku rubbed his forehead. "…Okay." He sighed and cleared his throat, letting his fingers drum over Sora's back.

"And then we could go up to my room and talk or something!" Sora grinned, poking Riku's chest.

_It's getting worse by the second…_ Riku sighed, tucking Sora's head under his chin.

"Don't you think it's too much for Leon?" the silver haired teen hummed in question.

"What do you mean?" Sora blinked, looking up curiously at Riku.

"I mean… Don't you think he needs some alone time too?" Riku sighed, turning to look at Sora then.

"But… But I missed Leon…" Sora murmured, flashing Riku a pleading look. "Can't we spend some time with him? Please?"

"I think lunch is plenty of time to spend for one day," Riku informed Sora, tossing in his two-cents with a weary look. "He just got back so I'm sure he wants to have time to himself to get back into the routine of things and whatnot."

Sora sighed and shook his head. "But…Leon would…"

Riku was getting sick and tired of that name _already_. It was _Leon this,_ _Leon that_, in fact, Sora hadn't even said one word about _him_ today. No compliments…nothing. Riku felt a bit…jaded, perhaps. "Fine. Do whatever…" _But I'm not leaving your side and letting you be alone with him for two seconds._

"Thanks!" Sora grinned and hugged Riku tightly before reaching down to snag Riku's hand. "Let's go to lunch now!" Sora urged, tugging on his friend's hand with an adorable, and utterly molestable, smile.

Riku swallowed the small lump in his throat and let Sora drag him out of bed. He was not pleased, not pleased at all.

Sora chirped and quickly entered the bathroom, grabbing some clothes and promising Riku he would be right back.

The elder just sighed and crossed his arms, waiting for Sora to finish dressing.

No longer than a minute later, Sora was out, dressed in a bright orange tee and a pair of jeans. "Let's go to your room now and get you dressed!" he chuckled, hands on his hips.

Riku mentally scowled. "Yeah. Let's go."

Riku and Sora made it to the pool-area in a record time of five minutes after they had left Sora's room. Sora had, practically, acted like a hot-footed couch who was hustling their player to do things faster. And frantically, Riku had never gotten dressed so fast in his entire life. He barely had buttoned his jeans when Sora had dragged him out of the bathroom and out of the room altogether. Was Sora that excited?

Regardless, the pair now stood in the desolate pool-area. It was quiet. Peaceful. Sora stood happily next to Riku. The silveret didn't dare reach for Sora's hand. He felt it would be out of place. "I called the maids and told them to bring the food out here. And I told them to tell Leon to come out as well!"

_He's talking really fast…_ Riku thought dully as he took a seat on one of the pool chairs. Sora sat on the ground beside him and grinned up at the silveret with a wide smile. "You'll like Leon, trust me!"

_No, I won't_, Riku deadpanned in his mind bitterly. "Well see about that." He replied quietly, wanting nothing more than to relax and make Leon disappear… Or at least make Sora treat him like he was one of the maids and not… Someone close to him. That was Riku's job, not Leon's.

Sora mewled and poked Riku's shoulder. "You don't look happy…" He frowned, hugging his knees to his chest.

_No shit, Sherlock._ Riku mentally groaned. "It's nothing. I'm just still sleepy." He sighed and rubbed his face, hoping that when he would open his eyes again, Sora would tell him how much better than Leon he was, and ask him to ravish him senseless.

…_Okay, what?!_ Riku shook his head and chased the thought away. _Must be a slip._ He thought, brushing his hand through his hair.

"Hey…Riku?" Sora asked timidly, a smile and a faint blush appearing on his cheeks as he tapped his feet against the marble ground around the pool. "Can I ask you a question?" the brunet requested very softly.

"Sure, go ahead," Riku answered and glanced down at the brunet. He was blushing? Why? For some reason Riku's stomach knotted and he stared expectantly at Sora.

"…how do you know if you like someone… like dating wise?" the brunet asked in a very, very quiet voice. Blue eyes looked up pleadingly, as if begging Riku not to be upset. "I…I'm just curious." Sora giggled uneasily.

Riku assumed this was about that _Leon_ guy. It had to be…and that just irked him beyond belief.

"You just do. You are attracted to them and stuff, you like to hug them and shower them with affection. It's hard to explain," Riku murmured, crossing his hands over his chest. "Why are you asking, anyway?"

"No particular reason!" Sora answered all too quickly, blush growing as he gave Riku a shy look.

Riku narrowed his eyes. "Okay. If you say so," he muttered, returning to his previous position on the chair and sighing.

"Oh, look! It's Leon!" Sora grinned, instantly standing up and waving at the older brunette.

Riku wished he had a harpoon to throw at him for hogging all of Sora's attention. Instead, Riku remained seated and watched as the brunet made his way over to the pair, pulling up two chairs. One for himself and one for Sora. Riku figured that Sora was going to sit in the middle. Why couldn't _Riku_ sit in the middle so that Sora wouldn't _be_ next to Leon? That'd be nice.

Leon placed the two chairs near Riku's. At once, the older brunet cautiously took a seat as Sora hopped up onto one as well, grinning widely at the other. "Hi, Leon!" he declared joyfully. Riku felt a migraine coming on.

"I'm honored to be invited to lunch," Leon stated with ease, offering a small smile at the brunet. Riku wanted to rip the other brunet's lips off for smiling at Sora and causing the brunet to mirror the smile right back. It was so annoying!

"It's no problem!" Sora giggled and leaned back in the chair.

"Oh Leon, can you help the maids? I can see them over by the door…they need help," Riku suddenly declared, trying to sound civil and polite. But really, he was just looking for an excuse to get the other way from _his _Sora…right. About that…

Leon nodded quietly and stood up, bowing and making his way towards the group of maids struggling with a bunch of trays.

"What was that for?" Sora frowned, huffing at Riku.

"Nothing. I just thought they needed help. Leon _is_ a butler after all, isn't he?" Riku replied easily.

"Yeah but… He was having time-off so he could have lunch with us!" Sora sighed, shaking his head. "If you don't like him you don't have to be such a meanie you know… It's not polite and it's really shallow."

Riku felt his heart sinking. Him? Shallow? Rude? He didn't really care if anyone said it, but Sora… It was actually… Hurtful.

Riku fell silent as Leon and the maids brought the food over, placing a tray with a small stand beside each of the three chairs. The maids giggled, bowed, and then promptly leaved after a quick word with Sora. Leon began, almost at once, conversing with Sora, as if to strike silently back at Riku. Payback.

Riku plucked a roll from the tray of food and squeezed it in his palm, watching it crumbled in his grasps. Frustration, yeah, he had a lot of that right now. Riku muttered something dark under his breath, a bit broken and almost depressed from Sora's statement moments before. No, he wasn't going to say anything to Sora right now. He felt too pissed and…bothered to do that.

Sora didn't seem to notice Riku's change of mood. The brunet was too busy catching up with Leon about what was happening to notice Riku's sudden melancholic and downright _adorable_ pouty state throughout the entirety of lunch.

Riku was not used to being ignored, but figured that if he was not going to have paid attention to he would at least have a good meal. He'd deal with winning Sora over later, on a full stomach.

He wondered if Sora would even notice he was missing, with him being so indulged in his conversation with Leon. He shook his head and took another pancake.

Sora chuckled and leaned back in his chair upon finishing his meal. "Hah! That's great Leon!" He grinned, crossing his hands behind his back. The older brunette nodded with a small smile.

Riku was about to throw the damn man into the pool and drown him with his own hands.

"So, you wanna go swimming now?" Sora suggested, cocking his head slightly.

Leon nodded and turned to look at Riku.

Riku sighed. "Yeah… Let's go."

Now, if Riku hadn't been jealous before he definitely was now. Not only had Sora stripped down to his swimming trunks—that didn't bother him that much—but that home wrecking, butler man had done the same. And with a body like that, Riku found it impossible that he was a _butler_ and not some famous celebrity in disguise. The silveret stood by his chair as Sora and Leon eagerly entered the pool, _already_ having fun. They were like long lost friends…or lovers. Riku begged to argue on that one.

"It doesn't bother me," Riku told himself as he lifted his arms into the air, easily peeling off his thin shirt. He wasn't really in the mood to swim but he _had_ to now that the _stalker_ was in the pool with Sora. This wasn't going to end well.

"It doesn't bother me," Riku repeated to himself as he quickly unbuttoned his jeans and tediously peeled them off, his gaze locked with the two brunets in the pool. If Leon _touched_ Sora, there would be hell to pay. No molesting was allowed here. None whatsoever. Unless it was—No.

Riku hadn't realized until that moment that Sora was blushing softly as he swam around the pool with the other brunet in tow, playing chase or _something_. Sora looked so happy…and giddy…and nervous, and he kept occasionally glancing back at Riku with an uncertain look. Almost to ask if Riku was upset with his behavior. Riku didn't dare answer, verbally or physically, and took a seat at the edge of the pool.

Sora quickly made his way to the older teen, panting and offering Riku a tiny smile. "You wanna join us?" he hummed, leaning on his elbows and throwing Leon a glance as the butler hoisted himself on Sora's other side.

Riku kept quiet for a few moments before rubbing the back of his head. "I'll see about it," he murmured, keeping his gaze cautiously pinned at the rippling water.

Sora scrunched his nose and nodded. "Okay… Well, feel free to join whenever you feel like it!" he informed him with a grin, tugging on Leon's hand and pulling him back to the center of the pool. The older brunette followed gladly, of course.

Riku sighed and leaned on his elbows, narrowing his eyes at Sora. Didn't he say he really needed a friend? Or was Leon not a friend to him? Perhaps he was… He didn't like that train of thought. Not a bit.

Riku, for an instance, couldn't stand being ignored, nor did he like sharing. Especially after his big breakup.

Without really thinking, Riku turned his back to the pool and headed back inside. Thoughts of protecting Sora left his mind briefly as he childishly threw a silent tantrum. Riku had never been one for sharing, nor was he one to be ignored. The silveret clenched his fists angrily by his sides, almost forgetting that he was a _slave_ here and he should have expected this. A butler was above a _slave_, after all.

Riku stopped walking in the small room that connected the pool area and the main house. The small room was silent and Riku could barely hear the splashing of water outside. Emerald eyes slid shut as he leaned back against the closest wall. A murmur slipped from his lips moments later.

"I hate this," Riku decided and forced himself to open his eyes and stare back out at the pool. Sea green eyes locked with Sora's form. It took everything the broken Riku had not to go back and punch the butler straight in his face and kick him aside.

Riku lowered his gaze and rubbed his forehead "Am I…jealous?" he asked himself, his eyes widening wearily. He shook his head a moment later. "Probably just being stupid." He sighed and brushed his hand through his hair. "Better go to my room and do something with those books Sora gave me…" He sighed and brushed his hand through his hair.

Sora, meanwhile, was dunked by Leon, and was enjoying it quite a bit… Almost enough to forget about Riku. Almost.

"Is something wrong, Master Sora?" Leon sighed, supporting himself against the edge of the pool.

"Riku's gone…" Sora murmured, looking at the exit from the pool. "Wonder why he did that…" He frowned, making his way out of the pool and getting his towel.

"Perhaps he was tired?" Leon suggested, wiping his forehead and cocking his head at Sora.

"Nah, it's probably something serious so I better go check it." The youth sighed and wrapped himself up in the towel, smiling at Leon. "Tell mom you're free for the afternoon, imma go check on Riku," he informed Leon and quickly took off.

Riku, meanwhile, entered his room quickly, not bothering to redress. He figured he'd just linger around his warm room in his swim trunks for awhile. He doubted anyone would come in so he really didn't need to worry. Besides, trunks were better than what he was wearing when he first cam here. Desolately, Riku sat down on the edge of his bed and began thumbing through a book Sora had given him, though part of him wanted to return to the pool and drag Sora away from the older brunet.

It was only two more minutes before Sora entered the room, dripping wet. The small brunet closed the door gently behind him and walked over to Riku with a weary smile on his lips. Riku didn't even raise his gaze from the book.

"Riku?...You okay?" Sora asked nervously, his fingers toying with his wet hair as he swayed back and forth on the balls of his feet.

Riku murmured a response and pretended to be absorbed in the book. Frankly, he couldn't read even if he wanted to—his mind was too scrambled to focus on reading _words_ in a _book_.

"Riku?" Sora asked again, walking over and cautiously sitting down beside the older teen. Apprehensively, Sora placed a hand on Riku's shoulder. Riku promptly closed the book he had been reading.

"You were acting weird and I got worried…" Sora sighed, pulling the towel up over his head like a hoodie. "Something wrong?"

"Not really, I was just tired," Riku murmured after a long moment.

Sora chuckled and poked Riku's shoulder. "Right."

"I didn't feel like staying, so I went." The older teen shrugged and rubbed his forehead. "It's nothing."

"It's something if it makes you just go away without noting…" Sora sighed and cocked his head. "Did I do something? Tell me, I wanna know…"

Riku sighed and leaned back. "I don't like Leon," he announced, keeping his eyes safely shut.

Sora lowered his look and laced his fingers together. "Why? Is it because I'm paying less attention to you when he's around?"

Riku didn't want to answer that question. The silveret shrugged and kept his gaze off the brunet beside him, too fearful of the truth that surely would come out eventually. But really. What was the truth exactly? "What if I said yes?" he asked plainly, fingers strumming the top of his bare knee

"Uhm…" Sora trailed off and tapped Riku on the shoulder. When Riku didn't look his way, Sora frowned deeply. "If you said yes then I'd apologize…I just haven't seen him for awhile. A really long time, actually…and…"

Riku was a bit internally terrified to hear the 'and' part. "What?"

"He's like a big brother, I suppose," Sora murmured and hunched his shoulders up. "I never had one so Leon…is kinda like that to me, I suppose." The brunet moved uncomfortably, trying to get comfortable on the bed but without moving too close to his upset friend. "I'm sorry, Riku…"

Riku bit his bottom lip. "It's…nothing, really. You don't have to apologize to me. I'm just a slave. It's nothing," he mumbled.

Sora knew otherwise. "Riku…"

"I was just being stupid, don't fret about it." Riku sighed, leaning back against the wall and closing his eyes.

Sora lowered his eyes and pursed his lips. "Why were you so upset then?"

"I already told you, I don't like sharing… Friends," he concluded quietly with a sigh.

Sora scrunched his nose. "If you say so…" he whispered, rubbing the towel against his head.

Riku sighed and turned over so he could look at Sora, eyeing his briefly before quietly offering his hand for the brunette to take.

Sora blinked at the outstretched hand. A small blush appeared on the brunet's face before he timorously extended his own hand, lightly clasping his own over Riku's. Blue eyes shyly glanced up at aquamarine. "You know that no matter what you'll be my friend, right?"

Riku offered a wayward smile and subconsciously squeezed Sora's hand. "Thanks, Sora," he murmured and absentmindedly began toying with Sora's fingers.

Sora smiled radiantly. "You're welcome!" he eagerly chirped and gave a timid squeeze back, his cheeks turning a sharper red as his breath caught in his throat for no reason whatsoever.

Riku looked like he was about to say something but instead remained silent. Sora noticed this and turned a darker red still.

"How often do you go outside? I mean, just going out for a family trip on Sunday whatsoever…" the silver haired teen finally sighed, allowing his gaze trail over to Sora's direction.

"Mmm… Not very often. I usually don't ask, though. I have most of the things I need in here so… I just don't." Sora shrugged and slumped on the bed, letting his head land on Riku's lap. "We usually fly abroad three times a year on holidays," he hummed, shrugging.

Riku leaned back and let his hand land on Sora's shoulder, squeezing lightly every now and then like a massage of a sort. "I see…" he concluded, eyes lingering on Sora's lithe form.

"How about you?" Sora wondered as he nuzzled his cheek against Riku's leg, getting comfortable. "Did you travel often, I mean?"

Riku shrugged dismally and brushed his fingers through Sora's hair this time. Aquamarine eyes remained on Sora's curled up form, glad that the brunet was laying on him and not that butler guy…even though Sora considered him an older brother. God. Why was he so jealous?

"Not really," Riku answered honestly. Silence. "We stayed at home most of the time." His fingers continued threading through Sora's hair. Back and forth. A small scratch there. Riku didn't say anymore. He was just at utter peace having the brunet's warm body against his body—regardless of how unclothed he was.

"That feels good," Sora admitted dreamily, smiling sweetly as he broke the silence.

"Hm." Riku replied quietly and closed his eyes, letting himself drift away in thoughts as his fingers kept raking back and forth through the rich cinnamon locks.

Sora sighed quietly and curled closer to Riku, fingers fidgeting with his towel. "Hey… Riku? Can I touch your hair too?" he whispered, rubbing his cheeks with the back of his hands, swallowing thickly.

"Why?" the elder asked calmly as his fingers kept grazing against the still humid brown mane.

"It feels really nice…" Sora smiled, turning around so he could face Riku. His shoulders pulled up by instinct as he offered the silver haired teen a pleading look.

Riku shrugged and averted his gaze for a single moment. "I suppose if you want. It's not really that soft but if you want," Riku murmured, tending to ramble towards the end as he kept his gaze locked with an object in the distance.

"Really?!" Sora exclaimed happily, a large grin appearing on his cheeks as he stared at Riku with wide, blue eyes.

"Eh, sure, I guess," Riku responded with a nod, uneasily looking towards Sora once more. Sora was awfully close and a dark red and incredibly adorable looking. This boy was unbelievable.

Sora smiled sincerely and impulsively leaned forward and kissed Riku's nose before pulling back with a crimson blush and sifted his fingers into Riku's hair, collapsing back against the older's chest as he somewhat sat in Riku's lap, but more so on the space on the bed between the teen's legs.

Riku cleared his throat uneasily as the light feeling of delicate fingers sank in his hair, caressing his scalp with a line of feather-light touches, like cotton candy or clouds… Something fluffy and awfully sweet. Something like Sora.

The brunette smiled with content as his cheek meet Riku's firm collarbone. He liked the feeling of it, it was so comforting and safe… Very much like Leon's, only more raw… And somewhat familiar.

"Sora…" the older teen murmured quietly, leaning into the touch. It felt so damn nice and maternal… Riku missed the touch, missed it so damn much it almost hurt.

"Mm?" Sora hummed quietly, pulling his shoulders up as he curled on Riku's lap, tucking his knees under himself.

"Don't… Fall asleep…" Riku whispered, leaning his cheek against Sora's wrist and sighing softly. Missed it too damn much…

Sora chuckled softly under his breath. "I won't," the small brunet reassured the taller teen as he kept close to Riku's warm, bare chest. It was akin to the model's chests on television that he often stared at in awe. The brunet giggled mentally and snuggled closer, his nimble fingers stroking a small patch of hair of Riku's hair.

"Alright, good," Riku mumbled. The silveret leaned his head against the soft caress that the younger teenager gave.

Sora absently began to draw small shapes onto Riku's lower stomach as he remained curled up against Riku. "I'm sorry again," Sora whispered, keeping his free hand buried in Riku's tresses.

"Don't apologize. I was an ass and overreacted," said Riku with an edge to his voice that was easily detectable.

Sora sighed and kept his cheek pressed to Riku. "Can I make it up to you?"

Riku shrugged. "You don't have to, but if it will make you feel better- sure, why not?" He sighed and opened his eyes, scanning the goop of brown hair just below his chin. "Feeling comfortable?" Riku snickered and took a deep breath in, wrapping his arms slowly around Sora's frame.

"Yeah," Sora admitted with a small chuckle as he shrugged the towel off; revealing the soft, smooth skin of his back.

Riku couldn't help but adore the texture of Sora's back. It was like running your hands through heavy cream, or some very fine sand.

"Well… I guess it's good then…" Riku murmured, his dexterous fingers swimming back and forth across the tender skin.

Sora swallowed thickly and pressed closer to Riku, pursing his lips tightly together. Damn… Having Riku touching like that felt too nice for his own liking. Honestly, the feeling of sparks running up and down his spine was simply overwhelming…

Riku eyed the brunet in his grasps for a long while. "Hey, Sora?" Riku asked quietly, his eyes transfixed with Sora's almost angelic body. It wasn't tall like his, nor was it muscular. It was hard to describe. The only word Riku could think of was heavenly, and not even that justified the boy's torso.

"Hm?" Sora trembled and didn't dare to peek up at the older silveret. The brunet still felt bad and he didn't want to push his luck by moving. If they were both comfortable Sora wouldn't dare to move out of this position anytime soon unless Riku wanted to.

"You're shaking," Riku informed the brunet as he brushed his knuckles down the silky, tan skin on Sora's back.

"Oh…" Sora tried not to stammer or stutter. "I'm sorry." Sora flattened his shaking hand against Riku's stomach. The brunet dropped his hand from Riku's hair and allowed it to rest on the silveret's shoulder, his fingers gripping the area tightly. Almost as if he was afraid to let go.

"Something bothers you?" the older teen asked softly, soothing his hands down the brunette's sides. Ah… Showing care and affection. He kind of missed doing it…

Sora shook his head in reply and swallowed quietly. "It's nothing Riku. Just a bad thought."

Riku sighed and hugged Sora close. "You know… If it really upsets you that much, you should share. Maybe I can help," he offered in a quiet murmured, hands fastened safely around Sora's waist.

The brunette squirmed slightly and shook his head. "It's okay. It's over now anyway." He offered Riku a brilliant, somewhat shy smile, and returned to leaning his head against Riku's chest.

It wasn't five minutes later before a knock on the door could be heard, making both teens quickly unbind and head into different directions. Of course, Riku nor Sora knew why they lunged away from one another. What were they so afraid of? Someone catching them snuggling? Was that what they were doing? Or was it something different? Riku didn't bother asking.

"May I come in?"

Leon. Riku narrowed his eyes and watched as Sora looked to Riku, sheepishly smiled, then scrambled over to the door, grabbing his towel as he went. The brunet wrapped the towel tightly around his upper torso and opened the door, a dark crimson on his cheeks.

"Hi Leon!" Sora greeted nervously, beaming happily at the older brunet as he began trembling once more.

Riku sat down on the edge of the bed once more, eying Leon with a deathly look. One that ultimately stated, 'you touch him and you're dead'. Riku, though, remained silent. Polite and silent..except for his deadly glares that were sent at the other.

Leon blissfully ignored the daggers Riku was sending at him and bowed politely. "Master Sora, your father wants you to eat lunch with him." He informed, casting the youth a look of sympathy. "I highly suggest you don't let him down. He said it was important."

Sora rubbed the back of his head and nodded. "Come on Riku…" he offered the older teen a tiny smile. "Let's go." Riku felt a dread feeling swirling at the pit of his stomach. Sora's father? Wasn't he the one who bought him…?

"Riku?" Sora frowned, placing his hands on his hips.

"Actually, your father wanted to speak to you alone," Leon hummed and placed his hand on Sora's shoulder, squeezing it gently.

"And why can't I come?" Riku found himself retorting at once, protectively looking from Sora and then to Leon. More daggers sent towards the tall brunet butler. Sora sent him a _look_ and Riku quieted at once. "Fine, go," he grumbled under his breath and looked off to the right.

"I'll be back soon, Riku," Sora reassured the silveret with a softened smile. "You'll be fine, right?..."

"Yes," Riku lamented and paused when he felt Sora's hand on his shoulder. Aquamarine eyes glanced awkwardly up to blue ones. "Huh?... What is it, Sora? You shouldn't keep your father waiting…"

"Uhm…heh, yeah," Sora said quickly, quickly removing his hand, forgetting why he had put it there to begin with. The brunet waved at Riku quickly and then scampered out of the room with Leon.

Riku growled and rubbed his head. He was being a jerk again, wasn't he?

Oh well… Time to get dressed…

Sora sighed and followed Leon to his room, holding his hand absently and moving his gaze from one tile to another as they progressed towards his room so he could get dressed. He usually would be happy about having lunch with his usually busy father, but today he just felt off… Most probably because he knew he left Riku in a rather uneasy situation.

He wanted to hug him again and let him know that he was still his friend… And that he didn't like seeing him feeling down like that. At all.

"Do you know what he wants to talk to me about?" Sora asked as they neared the door to the small lunchroom his father usually ate his lunch in. The brunet shifted uncomfortably before glancing over at Leon.

"No," Leon said and gestured for Sora to enter. "You'll do fine. I mean, you are his son. It'll be fine," Leon reassured the smaller brunet and nudged him towards the door.

And with one deep breath, Sora entered the room and went on to have lunch with his father, which honestly, was a rare occasion. While Sora remained in that room, Leon wandered up and down the hallway, making sure everything was in order. The older brunet figured he'd wait for Sora to finish and then escort him back to the room he had been in prior. It was the least he could do. Riku, on the other hand, was a nervous wreck. He just _knew_ they were discussing him. Riku grabbed a pillow and smothered himself with it, trying to keep his mind off Sora for more than a minute. It was pointless.

After twenty minutes, Sora exited the room, appearing a bit shaken up. Sora swallowed thickly and looked to his right, noticing Leon leaning against the wall. Was he trembling that badly? Would Leon notice?

Leon quietly pushed himself from the wall and crossed his hands over his chest. "Well?"

"He wanted to talk about Riku." Sora shrugged, not bothering to look up at the elder's face and swallowing again.

"I see… Are you alright? You seem pale," Leon noted quietly, squeezing Sora's shoulder.

Sora swallowed again and let himself hug Leon tightly, burying his face in the man's firm chest. "He treats Riku like a slave…" he whispered, tightening his hold around the other brunette's waist. "And… He's not. Riku's my friend!"

Leon shook his head quietly and planted a tiny kiss on top of Sora's head. "Don't mind his words then," he sighed, hugging the teen back and closing his eyes. "You were the one that told me it doesn't matter what others think of you as long as you're happy. It should be the same with Riku and your father," he explained, hands going up and down Sora's back in slow, soothing motions.

The youth sighed and dragged a deep breath in. "I know it's kinda stupid and I'm being really sentimental but… I don't want him to treat Riku like a slave… So what if he bought him at some stupid auction? Riku's human too… Right Leon?" He sniffled once, rubbing the corners of his eyes.

The older brunette offered Sora a tiny smile as he crouched beside him, squeezing his hands lightly and looking up at him. "You shouldn't be upset about this," he sighed, pressing Sora's fingers against his lips. "You still make your own decisions. It's you who decides whether that boy is or isn't a slave… Am I right?"

Sora swallowed and nodded quietly, eying the kneeling man in front of him. He couldn't help but compare him to Riku… Both radiated this masculine aura, only Leon's was much more refined and mature, restrained, yet still evident, while Riku's was free and still held traces of childishness.

He couldn't decide which one he liked better.

"I suppose you are right," Sora reasoned and shivered a bit. "But…I can't control what Dad does to Riku, though. What if he…hurts him or something?! I don't want to see Riku hurt!" Sora gulped and hid his face once again, feeling a feral need to cry grow in his chest. He wouldn't cry, though. He didn't want to appear weak. He wasn't. He was emotional but not _weak_.

"Then protect him?" Leon suggested and helped Sora to his feet once more. "If you're this worked up over him perhaps you should return to him? It's quite obvious that he's become attached to you," the old brunet said.

"He…is?" Sora blinked as he stumbled to his feet, holding the older's hand. "I…didn't think he was?"

"Yes," Leon reiterated and began leading Sora slowly down the hallway. "He's protective of you as well," Leon chuckled deeply. "It's obvious that he cares about you, regardless of what you're father's done."

Sora turned a light shade of pink. And again, he wasn't sure whether he liked Leon's kindness or Riku's better. "That's good," Sora sighed in relief and continued down the hallway, feeling slightly better. Perhaps if Riku truly was his friend this whole setup and ordeal would work out. Maybe, just maybe.

When they returned, Leon stood idly outside the door. "I'll leave you to him now, Master Sora," the brunet said huskily as he let go of Sora's hand, bowing in front of the brunet.

Sora blushed softly and held the doorknob, uncertain if he wanted to return to Riku just yet and leave Leon just yet.

"Thanks…" the brunette whispered, squeezing both of Leon's hands and taking a deep breath in, standing on the tips of his toes so he could wrap his arms around Leon's neck and let himself sink in that one last comforting embrace.

"You have to go now…" Leon whispered quietly, voice sounding quite strained. "He's waiting."

Sora nodded and slowly slid back to a complete standing position. "Thanks, Leon…" he whispered. "You're great."

Leon bowed with a faint, yet incredibly genuine smile. "It was nothing, Master Sora," he murmured and quietly and left.

Sora took a deep breath in and out, eyeing the copper colored doorknob.

Riku was inside his room, already dressed and sprawled on his stomach, reading one of the books Sora gave him to distract his mind from the thoughts swimming around in his head, almost all of them regarding Sora.

Although Sora was glad to be back with Riku, he felt a small pang of remorse for having left Leon. The brunet shuffled quietly into the room, hands laced innocently in front of him. The young brunet cleared his throat, drawing Riku's attention at once. Riku glanced up from the book and locked his gaze with Sora's. "Welcome back," Riku said calmly.

Sora laughed uncomfortably and marched over to where Riku was laying. "Thanks," Sora whispered and sat down beside Riku.

Riku arched a brow and closed the book, placing it beside him. "What's up?" Riku sat up straight, noticing a different…something about Sora. "You look really out of it," the silveret noted, lifting a hand to gently place it on Sora's shoulder.

Sora looked up quickly to Riku, smiling sheepishly. "I'm fine. Just a bit… tired, that's all," Sora lied and eased into Riku's touch.

"You sure?" Riku wondered, biting his bottom lip.

Sora nodded and rubbed his forehead. "My dad is so old fashioned…" he murmured, offering Riku a weary smile.

Riku shook his head and snickered, flipping back on the bed and resting his head on his crossed hands. "All parents are like that, to one degree or another…"

Sora sighed and slid on top of Riku's back, burying his nose in Riku's hair and just breathing his scent. Rain… He liked Riku's natural odor, it reminded him of fresh and crisp air, of winter and sharing sweet, innocent gestures with your dearly beloved. "Rikuu…" he murmured softly, feeling at ease now that the older teen's scent was all around him.

"Mm?" the older male responded calmly, eyes sliding close as he let Sora sniff through his mane of hair.

"I really… Like hugging you…" Sora murmured, settling his arms around Riku's shoulders and yanking him closer as if he was some stuffed toy.

Riku snickered and gently pried Sora away from his back, turning to lie on his side and pressing the teen against him in a tight hug.

"Thanks…" Sora purred, inhaling the alluring scent and easily drowning in it.

Riku blinked once as tender warmth settled in the pit of his stomach, sending millions of ethereal butterflies fluttering through him and rocking his body. "Sora…" he murmured, slowly letting his eyes close and the light warmth settle in his cheeks as he indulged in that sweet kiss placed on his left cheek.

Riku kept his arms tightly around Sora. He breathed in and out a few times. Sora blinked a few times. "Yeah?" Sora asked softly, keeping close to the silveret's cheek as he breathed hot puffs of air.

Riku was about to ask why Sora had done that, but he figured he shouldn't bother. Riku kept close to Sora, absently nuzzling closer to the brunet. "Nothing," he murmured and brushed his fingers down Sora's back a few more times.

"Are you mad?" Sora asked nervously, brushing his nose affectionately against his friend's face, refusing to move away from Riku's warmth and protection. Riku was his friend now, he _should_ be allowed to do this. Leon had always let him do this…so why should Riku be any different?

"No," Riku said simply and breathed out. "Just…surprised, I guess."

Sora pressed his cheek against Riku's, quivering at how close they were. "Surprised over what?" he whispered, his voice gentle as it wafted into Riku's ear that was nearby.

Riku shuddered. "That you're this affectionate. I didn't really expect it," Riku murmured inaudibly as his eyes lidded once again, blocking out the light and allowing his mind to picture the brunet beside him.

"W… Well…" Sora swallowed quietly. "You're… Worth my affection…" he murmured, fingers gently squeezing the back of Riku's black cotton shirt.

"Thanks," Riku whispered back, shifting slightly and leaning his head against Sora's.

"Riku?" Sora hummed quietly, sliding his slender fingers to Riku's nape and tangling his fingers in the soft baby-strands there.

"Yeah?" the older teen replied calmly, though his voice seemed to hide some excitement.

"Could you hold me closer?" the brunette sighed, nuzzling against the lobe of Riku's ear and letting his warm, sweet breath caress the elder's neck.

Riku downright shivered at how close Sora was. He couldn't breathe. He had only known Sora for a few days now but it had felt like quite a long time. Probably because he hadn't been away from Sora for more than a few minutes.

Those little breaths on his sensitive neck reminded him of _him_. Of how he used to touch him like that. Kiss him after teasing him senseless. Riku's stomach began to twist and turn, his body shivering as well as he yanked Sora closer upon request.

"Riku…my heart's beating really fast," Sora admitted, his warm cheek pressing against Riku's neck. "Is..something wrong with me? It's…kind of worrying me," Sora whispered nervously. "Usually it only beats this fast if I run a lot and I'm exhausted and stuff."

"It's normal," Riku reasoned.

Sora made a small 'oh' noise and brushed his hand through Riku's hair. "What causes it? Do you know?" Sora smiled against Riku's neck and experimentally kissed his friend's neck, wanting to show him that he really did deserve affection from someone. Sora just…didn't know a lot of things.

Riku swallowed thickly and let a small gasp escape his throat. "It's… When you feel close… To someone that's really important and special to you… Your heart… Starts beating fast and… You start feeling funny… But in the nice way…" he whispered, burying his nose in Sora's hair. "It makes you want to get even closer and… Probably make the other person… Feel nice…"

Sora nodded and planted a soft kiss just behind Riku's ear, sighing quietly. "I… See…" he murmured, kissing Riku's cheek again. "It feels nice…" He smiled and buried his head in the joint between Riku's neck and shoulder, purring softly. "Does it feel nice to you too, Riku?"

How could he possibly answer such an absurd question as that?

"I suppose it does," Riku murmured in a husky slur as he craned his neck to the side, allowing the brunet to have more access to his neck. This wasn't a 'I suppose' situation. This was a, 'hell yes it feels _damn_ good', situation but Riku wasn't one to come out and say that. Especially when Sora was just experimenting in the fields. Experimenting…Was that exactly what the younger was doing?

"Oh," Sora answered softly as he kept his face hidden, his hands kneading almost kitten-like against Riku's shoulders. "I can stop if you want? If it doesn't feel good?" the brunet suggested sheepishly, smiling sadly against Riku's skin. He didn't want to stop, though. It made him feel warm, loved, and protected.

"It's fine," Riku reassured Sora, his hands slipping back into Sora's hair, caressing the soft locks of brown hair. So damn beautiful. "Continue…if you want," he breathed out when he felt Sora's nose brush against a sensitive spot on his neck.

"You sure?" Sora mumbled worriedly, clinging like a baby koala to the older male.

"Yeah…" Riku answered faintly, voice distant and somewhat pleading.

Sora swallowed and closed his eyes, letting his fingers slide over Riku's back and mesh the skin there. His lips moved to plant millions of feather light kisses on the pale neck, relishing each and every delicate portion of Riku available.

Riku gasped softly and rolled his head back, revealing more flesh for Sora to nip on with those petal-soft lips.

"God… Sora…" he moaned quietly, hands tightening around the youth's waist and squeezing him impossibly close.

Sora blushed darkly at the sound. "Uhm?" the brunet wondered as he shivered compulsively. "What was that noise?" he asked a bit apprehensively as kept close to the older teen.

"Nothing," Riku lied breathlessly. Why did he have this sudden, undeniable urge to kiss the adorable brunet in his arms. He wouldn't have minded asking but he figured that'd be quite awkward. After all they were just friends.

Sora's lips led tediously along the expanse of his friend's neck. The brunet placed a soft kiss to Riku's cheek and lingered there, holding his friend close. "Your skin is really soft," he whispered gently.

"Thanks," Riku exhaled in peace.

"Can I kiss it whenever I like?" Sora asked in a hesitant whisper, cheeks growing red with each passing moment.

Riku kept quiet for quite a while, considering Sora's option. On one hand… He'd kill to get more kisses from Sora. On the other, it was quite hard to control himself in that state… Riku was scared.

"…Yeah," he finally answered, swallowing quietly and closing his eyes, usually pale cheeks painted rich crimson. "You can…"

Sora purred with content and placed another kiss to Riku's cheek. "M'happy…"

"Yeah… So am I…" Riku exhaled and offered Sora a tiny, warm smile and a kiss on the cheek.

At least now he was partially more important than Leon. At least for this moment he had all of Sora's attention and affection. Leon was no longer a part of the equation for this moment. But, of course, Riku knew deep down that Leon wasn't going to go away.

Riku's hand slid up and caressed Sora's tanned cheek with his hand, lightly brushing his thumb along the area. "Would you be offended if I told you that I really enjoy this?"

"Of course not," Sora replied calmly and leaned into Riku's touch. "So you really don't mind me kissing you?"

"Nope," Riku answered honestly as his breathing began to escalate. They weren't really technically kissing…and just the mere thought of that was causing Riku to shudder uncontrollably. He had just _met_ Sora and he was already having distant and romantic thoughts.

Sora offered Riku a shy smile and gently cupped his cheeks, kissing his nose and chin then. "It's really fun to kiss you too… Makes me feel all fluttery on the inside… Like my tummy melts…" He whispered, swallowing and hunching his shoulders.

"Me too…" the older male admitted quietly, fingers absently teasing Sora's nape, milking series of quiet purrs and gasps from the brunette.

"Hey… Riku? Will you come sleep with me tonight?" Sora murmured, sliding his hands down to Riku's chest and clenching his shirt gently between his fists.

"…Yeah," Riku confirmed with a faint nod, his chest swelling with somewhat nostalgic warmth. "I'd love to…"


End file.
